The recently appointed Special Envoy of the Secretary General on the situation of children of Ukraine, Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjord Gylfadóttir, conducted her first fact-finding mission to Ukraine (19-20 March), during which she met with a broad range of key partners, both at the high and working levels, in order to get a clear picture of the most pressing issues facing children of Ukraine, wherever they are.
The Consultation Group on the Children of Ukraine (CGU)’s Dialogue Group on Transnational Procedures and Guardianship held a meeting on 24 March, during which its members heard the moving testimony of a young man from Ukraine (accompanied by his social worker) on his experience arriving in and integrating in Czechia and his recommendations on how to further enhance access to social services and support for children of Ukraine coming to host states.
On 25 March 2025, the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan brought together 40 national and international stakeholders to discuss the role of the European Social Charter in safeguarding children’s rights, notably the rights of refugee and migrant children and the challenges in ensuring their protection. The national legal framework for child protection was reviewed, with a view to address challenges and opportunities for progress for Armenia. The workshop was organised by the Council of Europe as part of its projects “Enhancing social human rights in Armenia” and “Protecting the Rights of Armenian Children in Post-Conflict Context”, which are part of Council of Europe’s comprehensive response package to the refugee influx in Armenia in the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Armenia 2023-2026.
