Technical Support Instrument
Implementing reforms that promote children’s rights in early childhood education and care, education and social protection
As the UN custodian of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, UNICEF has accumulated 75 years of engagement with member states on efforts to progressively realize the full rights of every child. UNICEF’s core asset is its global expertise and network, in development and high-income countries, and experience specifically on providing operational, technical, and research/analysis support to countries to improve the capacity and quality of social and human services for children.
DG REFORM and the Technical Support Instrument
The Directorate-General for Structural Reform Support (DG REFORM) helps EU countries to design and implement reforms as part of their efforts to support job creation and sustainable growth.
The Technical Support Instrument, managed by DG REFORM is the key tool for supporting Member States in designing and implementing growth-enhancing and inclusive reforms by providing expertise to national authorities. The support is on demand and Member States can request support to:
- implement resilience-enhancing reforms in the context of EU economic governance, such as those arising from country-specific recommendations under the European Semester and by virtue of implementing EU law;
- prepare, amend, implement and revise national recovery and resilience plans under the Recovery and Resilience Facility;
- implement economic adjustment programmes;
- implement reforms undertaken at their own initiative.
As a key partner in TSI projects, thanks to funding from the European Union, UNICEF aims to support Member States administrations in their efforts to implement reforms that promote children’s children’s rights in areas such as early childhood education and care, education and social protection.
TSI Projects
Austria
Improving staff working conditions for better quality in early childhood education and care in Austria
Early childhood offers a critical window of opportunity to shape the trajectory of a child’s holistic development and build a foundation for their future. The European Pillar of Social Rights states that all children have the right to affordable Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) of good quality. It is in the earliest years of a child’s life that the foundation and capacity to learn is laid, and this is built on throughout life. Learning is an incremental process; building a strong foundation in the early years is a precondition for higher level competence development and educational success as much as it is essential for health and the well-being of children. Participating in ECEC for children aged 0 to 6 and interaction with well-trained and quality ECEC professionals is beneficial for all children and especially beneficial for children of a disadvantaged background. It helps by preventing the formation of early skills gaps and thus it is an essential tool to fight inequalities and educational poverty. Quality, affordable and accessible ECEC also allows for increased parental-workforce participation.
The demand for ECEC for children from 0 to 6 is rising in Austria, however, a shortage in trained ECEC professionals has led to limited provision and decreased enrolment rates, specifically among children aged 0-3 years old. The main source of this shortage has been tied to the following:
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There are differing staffing and employment conditions for ECEC staff across Länder (provinces) and the municipalities including differences in salaries and salary schemes (Austria has over 60 different schemes), group sizes, the professional staff-child ratio, and service-related matters such as preparation time without direct child services.
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The ECEC profession is not perceived to be attractive, especially by male students, which is certainly also strongly influenced by the low level of recognition of the profession in society and the low salary.
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There is a high fluctuation of ECEC professionals due to retirement and to moving towards employers or regions offering more attractive working conditions.
The lack of ECEC staff as well as large group sizes and high fluctuation thus have severe negative effects on many children with disadvantaged backgrounds as the linguistic support cannot be guaranteed at the highest possible quality. Tackling the problem of framework conditions of ECEC staff has an impact on the quality of early childhood education and thus the improvement of children’s wellbeing in ECEC services to guarantee their rights.
The Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research is committed to strengthening ECEC quality and aligning provision to EU standards. As such, the ministry has requested technical support through the European Union’s Technical Support Instrument (TSI), the EU programme that provides tailor-made technical expertise to EU Member States to design and implement reforms. Support is requested in the area of ECEC, with the purpose of improving ECEC staff conditions, quality, and capacity to enhance the quality of education for young children in Austria.
Projected intended impact and outcomes
The expected long-term effect of this project is a strengthened quality, availability, equity and stability of ECEC workforce in Austria and reduced staff shortages. This will contribute to better access to and quality of ECEC services in the country. The specific objectives of this TSI Project will be achieved through the following outcomes:
Outcome 1: The Austrian authorities have gained extensive knowledge of the current status of the ECEC sector and implications for staffing.
Outcome 2: The Austrian authorities at federal and province level have jointly developed a Model Framework for ECEC Staffing Quality and Conditions, to serve as a template/good practice for adaptation and adoption at the province level, as well as a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for quality control and coordination of ECEC.
Outcome 3: Austrian authorities (federal and province level) agree on a detailed implementation strategy on the improvement of framework conditions and recruitment in ECEC, including a nationwide action plan and a roadmap for implementation.
Outcome 4: Based on concepts and recommendations developed by the project, the Austrian authorities (federal and province level) conduct a national communication and advocacy campaign aimed at increasing uptake of the ECEC profession.
By aiming to improve the framework conditions for staff in early childhood education and care (0-6 years) and therefore raise staff supply and quality in the sector, the TSI project will indirectly contribute to the success of the quantitative expansion of elementary education envisaged by Austria under the national Recovery and Resilience Plan, supported by the EU through NextGenerationEU.
Cyprus
Supporting the Expansion and Strategic Development of Early Childhood Education and Care in Cyprus
Early childhood offers a critical window of opportunity to shape the trajectory of a child’s holistic development and build a foundation for their future. The European Pillar of Social Rights states that all children have the right to affordable Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) of good quality. It is in the earliest years of a child’s life that the foundation and capacity to learn is laid, and this is built on throughout life. Learning is an incremental process; building a strong foundation in the early years is a precondition for higher level competence development and educational success as much as it is essential for health and the well-being of children. Participating in ECEC is beneficial for all children and especially beneficial for children of a disadvantage background. It helps by preventing the formation of early skills gaps and thus it is an essential tool to fight inequalities and educational poverty. Quality, affordable and accessible ECEC also allows for increased parental workforce participation.
Cyprus acknowledges the importance of providing affordable high-quality ECEC as a condition for promoting children’s early development and their subsequent school performance. It recognizes ECEC as an area that needs improvement and therefore has high policy priority. This is highlighted in the national Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) adopted in 2021. Through its RRP, Cyprus also aims to enhance the availability of quality care and social development infrastructure for children, and thus address the shortcomings highlighted by the relevant Country Specific Recommendation of the 2019 European semester cycle.
The Cyprus RRP 2021-2026 identifies the main challenges in the area of ECEC as follows:
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Cyprus relies heavily on informal settings or private institutions and social protection for families and children, as a proportion of GDP. This is comparatively low at 1.3% v EU 2.5% in 2016. This low investment is linked to weak support for disadvantaged children in ECEC and undermines potential long-term benefits of quality ECEC for inclusive educational outcomes;
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Free childcare is mainly limited only to guaranteed minimum income recipients, who also receive subsidization for private childcare. Depending on the age of the child, the type and provider of services, monthly fees range from €70 to €400, creating a disproportionate burden for families;
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The ECEC enrolment gap is higher for children under the age of three: while 97% of children aged 4 to 6 were enrolled in ECEC in 2019 (EU average 95.4%), 20.7% of children under the age of three participated in ECEC, below both the EU average (35.1%) and the Barcelona target (33%). The proportion of children 0 to 3 enrolled in ECEC was seriously impacted by COVID-19 pandemic, decreasing from 31.1% in 2019;
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The total fertility rate (2019) was 1.33, which since 1995 remains below the replacement level of 2.10 and is lower that the EU average of 1.55”.
Cyprus is committed to ECEC reforms and as such has a strong ECEC focus on their RRP and has requested technical support from the EU through the Technical Support Instrument (TSI) to enhance the quality, affordability, accessibility, and inclusiveness of ECEC for children aged 0-6. TThe Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare (Social Welfare Services) and the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth are committed to this project by driving this exciting intervention.
Projected intended impact and outcomes
This Project aims to support Cyprus in raising the quality, affordability, accessibility and inclusiveness of ECEC, by guiding investments and reforms in the sector as outlined in the national RRP for 2021-2026. This includes a mapping to inform the expansion of facilities, development of a quality framework, and undertaking a range of evidence generation to inform a national ECEC Strategy due to be adopted by the Council of Ministers by the end of 2024.
The specific objectives of this TSI Project will be achieved through the following outcomes:
Outcome 1: The Cypriot authorities have gained extensive knowledge of the current status of the early childhood education and care sector through 1) a mapping of existing services including supply and demand 2) a comprehensive analysis of status of the ECEC sub-sector, and 3) analysis of good practice from EU Member States/other European countries, and a set of recommendations, which enables them to conduct the relevant investments and reforms outlined in the national Recovery and Resilience Plan.
Outcome 2: Cyprus adopts a National Quality Framework for Early Childhood Education and Care, together with a set of related indicators reflecting the data collected and quality needs across the split system, which have been created jointly with all relevant authorities and stakeholders and validated by the Social Welfare Services of the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare and by the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth.
Outcome 3: The Cypriot authorities adopt a comprehensive national strategy for early childhood education and care and accompanying action plan, based on recommendations developed with the help of the mapping, sub-sector analysis and European good practice and the quality framework development process.
Czech Republic
Developing a Comprehensive Framework for the Monitoring and Evaluation of Early Childhood Education and Care in the Czech Republic
Background
Early childhood offers a critical window of opportunity to shape the trajectory of a child’s holistic development and build a foundation for their future. The European Pillar of Social Rights states that all children have the right to affordable and quality early childhood education and care (ECEC). It is in the earliest years of a child’s life that the foundation and capacity to learn is laid, and this is built on throughout life. Learning is an incremental process; building a strong foundation in the early years is a precondition for the development of higher-level competencies and future educational success, as much as it is essential for health and the well-being of children. Participating in ECEC is beneficial for all children and especially beneficial for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Quality ECEC holds transformative potential in bridging inequities early in life. It helps by preventing the formation of early skills gaps and is thus an essential tool to fight social inequalities and educational poverty. Quality, affordable and accessible ECEC also allows for increased parental workforce participation.
Despite the increasing demand for services for the youngest children, the Czech Republic has one of the lowest enrolment rates in ECEC for children aged 0-3 years in the EU, with only 6.8% (2022) attending the childcare/education, significantly falling behind the EU average of 35.9 % and the initial Barcelona target (33%) agreed at EU level. Insufficient capacities of existing services, lack of locally available and affordable quality ECEC (especially for children aged 0-3 years) have been identified as some of the key drivers of gender inequalities in the workforce.
While capacities for ECEC services for children aged 0-3 years are gradually increasing, including through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan and the European Social Fund+, an effective monitoring and evaluation framework providing data on access and quality of these services is missing. MOEYS has in place a monitoring and evaluation system for kindergartens, and data on ECEC for the respective age group is integrated into the national education management information system. The split responsibility for the ECEC system between MOLSA and MOEYS demands the development of a comprehensive and integrated monitoring and evaluation system that would link both systems (for under 3 years old and children aged 3-6 years) to enable strategic planning in the ECEC sector, children’s smooth transitions between the ECEC services, and consistency of quality and approaches across the services to create a continuum of early education and care for young children (0 – 6 years) in the Czech Republic.
Intended impact and outcomes of the project
The Czech Republic will benefit from technical support measures to increase the quality of and equitable access to ECEC, particularly for the services for children aged 0-3 years. This will be achieved by developing an overarching monitoring and evaluation system and by providing technical support to municipalities in expanding access to and increasing the quality of ECEC services, including for the most vulnerable. This will contribute to better access to and quality of ECEC services in the country.
The specific objectives of this TSI Project will be achieved through the following outcomes:
- Outcome 1: The Czech authorities have gained comprehensive understanding of the current status, provision and gaps regarding the monitoring and evaluation of early childhood education and care.
- Outcome 2: The Czech authorities have at their disposal an effective and comprehensive system for the monitoring and evaluation of ECEC (children aged 0-6 years) with a twin focus on raising quality and improving access, created jointly with all relevant authorities and stakeholders and validated by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport.
- Outcome 3: The Czech authorities have specific tools to promote and support municipal expansion of ECEC services, including on communication, strategic planning, financing and quality assurance of ECEC at local level.
Greece
Implementation of the European Child Guarantee
The project aims to support the Greek Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family as well as the national Center for Social Solidarity (EKKA), appointed as National Coordinator for the Child Guarantee, to implement the National Action Plan on the European Child Guarantee more effectively, with a view to establishing a sustainable system for monitoring the situation of children in need, governed by a robust mechanism with clear accountabilities, with a view to informing relevant policy and planning, including on particular topics, such as childhood obesity, where children in need seem to be mostly affected.
This project is funded by the European Union via the Technical Support Instrument and implemented by UNICEF, in cooperation with the European Commission.
Background
In 2019, almost 18 million children in the EU lived in households at risk of poverty or social exclusion, leading to an intergenerational cycle of disadvantage, with profound and long-term effects on children. To address the issue, the Council adopted in June 2021 a Recommendation establishing the European Child Guarantee aiming to combat child poverty and social exclusion by ensuring equal access of “children in need” to a set of key services. Greece, which was among the four EU countries in 2020 recording the highest rate of children at risk of poverty or social exclusion has now developed a Child Guarantee National Action Plan with specific measures to ensure that ‘children in need’ will have access to healthcare, education, childcare, decent housing and adequate nutrition. With the aim to achieving full and effective implementation of the plan, Greece requested technical support to address its main challenges, namely with regards to the monitoring, evaluation and governance of the plan and with promoting healthy nutrition for vulnerable children.
Support to be delivered
The project will provide the Ministry and EKKA with direct support and international expertise to develop a monitoring and evaluation framework for child-related policies and outcomes, including technical specifications for the creation of a registry for children in need. It will also provide capacity building to key stakeholders involved in the monitoring of the implementation of the Child Guarantee National Action Plan. Additionally, the project will support – with inter alia facilitation of stakeholder dialogue and consultation, as well as child participation - the adoption of a consolidated governance operating model for the implementation of the plan, with a clear set of duties, referral pathways and statutory collaboration protocols for all stakeholders involved. Finally, the project will generate evidence on the prevalence and eating habits of children living in poverty and social exclusion in order to propose an actionable policy framework to address causes and consequences of the obesogenic environment, particularly for vulnerable children.
Project objectives
The technical support is expected to help the Greek authorities implement the National Action Plan on the European Child Guarantee in a more efficient, data-driven way and to take targeted action on fighting obesity and promote healthy nutrition among groups of children in need. The project will thus indirectly contribute to the efficient allocation of European funds, responding to the requirement to mobilize at least 5% of ESF+ resources to tackle child poverty.
In the longer term, the project is expected to ensure that all children at risk of poverty and social exclusion are adequately identified and that they all have access to healthcare, education, decent housing and adequate nutrition.
Luxembourg
Strengthening Monitoring & Evaluation of Children’s Rights and Establishing a Sustainable Stakeholder Consultation Mechanism in Luxembourg
Over the last years, Luxembourg has made significant progress in the area of child rights, child poverty and social exclusion and recently adopted two cornerstone policy documents. First, in May 2022, Luxembourg adopted its first National Strategy and Action Plan on the Rights of the Child 2022-2026) in response to the recommendation by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and building on the Council of Europe Strategy on the Rights of the Child (2022-2027). Both these strategic documents reflect the concerted action and commitment to the promotion of children's rights in Luxembourg and call for a sound monitoring framework and effective participatory processes to ensure their effective implementation, monitoring and evaluation.
The Department of Children’s Rights (Service des Droits de l’Enfant) of the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth (hereafter ‘SDE’), the structure in charge of coordinating child rights policies’ promotion and monitoring at national level, has requested technical support and exchange with other countries on best practices in order to:
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Improve ways to monitor and evaluate the progress in implementation of the National Strategy and Action Plan on the Rights of the Child 2022-2026 and of the European Child Guarantee National Action Plan.
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Establish an inclusive framework to enable stakeholders’ and children’s effective participation in policy development and decision-making processes.
These two areas correspond to the two main pillars of this project, providing technical assistance and support to Luxembourg to effectively strengthen children’s rights by ensuring data-driven policy planning, monitoring and evaluation, including through meaningful child and stakeholders’ consultation, and thus address child poverty and social exclusion.
The Project aims to support Luxembourg to promote and improve children’s rights policies through better child rights monitoring and effective participation of children and other relevant stakeholders.
The specific objectives of this TSI Project will be achieved through the following outcomes:
Outcome 1: The Luxembourg authorities improve monitoring and evaluation methods and tools, based on results of assessment, EU and international good practice, stakeholder consultation and agreed roadmap.
Outcome 2: The Luxembourg authorities consult children and other relevant stakeholders according to a new governance mechanism for stakeholder consultation and ensure results inform policy planning and implementation on children’s rights.
The Project will benefit all those concerned with the implementation of children’s rights in Luxembourg: line ministries, local authorities, service providers, academia and civil society organisations concerned with child rights monitoring and child participation.
Romania
Enhancing the equity of education through preventing and combating school segregation
The Ministry of Education has adopted in December 2016 the Order of the Minister of Education No. 6134 of 21st of December 2016 on Prohibiting School Segregation in Pre-university Education School Units. Thus, the legal framework on school desegregation was revised and expanded to include 5 criteria of school segregation: 1) ethnicity, 2) disability, 3) family socio-economic status (SES), 4) students’ school performance, and 5) area of residence.
Although the Order No. 6134/2016 has been adopted, it has not been enforced yet (its entry into force is conditioned by the adoption of two methodologies: the school segregation monitoring methodology and the methodology for the prevention and intervention in cases of school segregation). Although the school segregation monitoring methodology was adopted by MoE in December 2019, the other methodology is not yet finalized.
There is no official data at national or sub-national level on the school segregation on the criteria of disability, SES of families, school performance or area of residence of students, but rather sporadic evidence of school segregation revealed by the mass-media on various criteria. According to the EC (2015) in Romania, 26% of Roma students learn in ethnically separate classes, and this share increased first to 29% (Education and Training Monitor, Romania 2017) and to reach a worrying 51% în 2021 (FRA 2022).
While previously, the Ministry of Education worked with UNICEF in developing the legal and policy frameworks for school desegregation (e.g. technical assistance for establishing the National Commission on School Desegregation and Inclusion, developing the methodology for school segregation monitoring, etc.), in 2021, the Ministry of Education, in consultation with UNICEF, decided to apply for an European Commission TSI project in order to complete the reforms needed for the entry into effect of the new legal framework on school desegregation. In 2022, The EC approved the TSI Project on school desegregation in Romania, with UNICEF as a provider of technical assistance for the Ministry of Education.
Project intended impact and outcomes
The expected impact of this Project is that all children and students in pre-university education in Romania have access to quality inclusive education, where school units monitor, prevent and combat school segregation.
In addition, the Project has the following outcomes:
Outcome 1: Legal and policy frameworks on school desegregation developed and revised for the Order of the Minister of Education 6134/2016 on the prohibition of school segregation in pre-university education to enter in effect.
Outcome 2: Ministry of Education has an increased capacity to promote the equity of education at national level through monitoring, preventing, and combating school segregation.
The Project will benefit school units in preuniversity education, County School Inspectorates (CSIs), County Teachers’ Training Houses (CTTHs) and the Ministry of Education, the National Commission for School Desegregation and Inclusion (NCSDI) and all students, especially the vulnerable ones.
Slovakia
Inclusion of children with disabilities in the context of deinstitutionalisation of substitute care in Slovak Republic
The Slovak Republic Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family has initiated a technical support project with UNICEF and the European Commission to strengthen its care capacities and establish standards to create an environment that enables children with disabilities to realize their full potential and enjoy their rights.
The general objective of this Project is to assist the Slovak Republic in their efforts to implement reforms, that stimulate investment, enhance competitiveness and contribute to sustainable economic and social convergence, resilience and recovery. Additionally, the project aims to strengthen institutional and administrative capacities, including at regional and local levels, to facilitate socially inclusive, green and digital transitions, effectively addressing challenges identified in the country-specific recommendations and Union law implementation.
The anticipated long-term effect of this Project is that children with disabilities will receive higher-quality services from the system of Social and Legal Protection of a Child and Social Guardianship s, as well as related services.
The specific objectives of this TSI Project will be achieved through the following outcomes:
Outcome 1: The Slovak authorities adopt a revised model for the social inclusion of children with disabilities in substitute care through the implementation of an integrated package of quality services provided by the substitute care system in cooperation with allied services.
Outcome 2: The Slovak authorities better monitor and evaluate the system performance and outcomes for children with disabilities in the substitute care system.
Outcome 3: Slovak authorities strengthen administrative capacity to evaluate and mainstream the revised approach into the existing system.
The project will benefit all those concerned with the care and inclusion of children with disabilities in the Slovak Republic: line ministries, local authorities, service providers, academia and civil society organizations concerned with children with disabilities.
The project was carried out with funding from the European Union via the Technical Support Instrument.
For more information, please visit the Reform Support website.