Building Trust and Resilience: Child Protection Systems in the Baltic Sea Region

This document provides a concise overview of the results of a mapping of child protection systems in seven countries in the Baltic Sea Region (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Lithuania and Norway) carried out in 2021-22, under the leadership of the Norwegian Presidency of the Council of the Baltic Sea States.

The mapping was commissioned by the Council of Baltic Sea States Expert Group on Children at Risk to inform the implementation of its strategic priority to strengthen national child protection systems, and to promote integrated strategies that have been demonstrated to contribute to positive change in the lives of children at risk of violence. It was carried out by Maestral International through desk reviews and interviews with key informants in the respective countries.

The mapping focused on six integrated elements of child protection systems:

— Legislation, Policy, and Reform
— Governance and coordination
— Child protection service models and frameworks
— Social work
— Monitoring & evaluation and accountability
— Participation, including child participation

The overall objective was to identify and document key elements and practices of well-functioning, accessible and resilient child protection systems that are adequately structured and equipped to protect children, including in periods of crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the war against Ukraine.