The Child-Friendly Municipality model is moving forward in Vaasa

Vaasa has set five concrete goals aimed at making the city more child-friendly by December 2025 Once implemented, these measures will make a significant difference to how children’s and young people’s rights are realised in our city.

UNICEF will carry out the assessment and make the decision on the Child-Friendly Municipality recognition by the end of 2025.

Vaasa’s five goals and actions taken

Vaasa’s action plan includes five goals that have either already been achieved or will be achieved by December 2025:

• The municipality has clear guidelines in place to support the introduction and systematic implementation of child impact assessments (LAVA). Child impact assessments are conducted by a collaborative team of qualified professionals.
  • Child impact assessments were piloted during the spring in Vaasa’s City Planning Department. Feedback has also been received from the Youth Council. The model will be officially adopted in early autumn, at which point training will also be provided for staff, supervisors and elected officials.
• The municipality’s staff and key stakeholders have been introduced to children’s rights as part of their induction programmes.
  • 30 training sessions on children’s rights have been held for staff, with 644 participants in total.
  • 96% of early childhood education and care staff have taken part in basic training on children’s rights.
• The municipality promotes opportunities for all children and young people to take part in hobbies and enjoy meaningful leisure time.
  • Last year, the annual Puddle Children’s Culture Weeks attracted 3,500 visitors and featured around 100 events over the course of one month.
  • Free weekly family exercise sessions have been organised for families with children, with a total of 2,800 participants in 2024.
  • Each week, more than 1,000 children and young people took part in school clubs organised under the Vaasa model for leisure activities. During the 2024–2025 school year, a total of 72 individual clubs were organised.
• Public transport routes and timetables, as well as the maintenance of cycle paths, are enhanced.
  • Public transport timetables: results from the resident satisfaction survey rose from 2.8 in 2022 to 3.2 in 2024 on a scale of 1 to 5. 32% of respondents were under the age of 24.
  • Winter maintenance of cycle paths: results from the resident satisfaction survey improved from 3.1 in 2023 to 3.4 in 2025 on a scale of 1 to 5. Children and young people also took part in the survey.
  • This goal was initiated by the children of Vaasa themselves.
• The municipality has a range of structures that support participation and consider the views of children and young people of different ages in the planning and development of services.
  • A total of 142 children took part in children’s panels and advocacy days in 2024.
  • Participatory budgeting trials at youth centres in autumn 2024: some 80 young people were involved deciding how part of the youth centres’ budget was spent. The trial will be repeated in autumn 2025.

Development work covers the whole city

The Child-Friendly Municipality model is a tool offered by UNICEF to municipalities. The model helps guide municipalities in making decisions that promote children’s well-being in both administration and services affecting their daily lives. It helps municipalities ensure that the rights of children, especially those most vulnerable, are upheld.

The development work covers the entire city and all sectors, from urban and transport planning to early childhood education and basic education. The Vaasa Youth Council has also been closely involved in the process.

This is how the Child-Friendly Municipality model is progressing in Vaasa

• 2022–2023: Mapping the current state of children’s rights, along with consulting and engaging children; creating an action plan
• 2024–2025: Implementation of the action plan and follow-up
• 2025–2026: UNICEF assessment and potential Child-Friendly Municipality recognition