Anyang City, 'Where Children Are Happy,' Receives UNICEF Child-Friendly City Certification

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Eom In-yong] Anyang City has received ‘Child-Friendly City’ certification from the Korean Committee for UNICEF. The certification period runs for four years, from June 5, 2025 to June 5, 2029.

A Child-Friendly City is a community that fully realizes the four fundamental rights of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child—the right to survival, protection, development, and participation—and provides a child-friendly environment so that children can live better lives.

The city held the ‘UNICEF Child-Friendly City Certification Proclamation Ceremony’ at 4 p.m. on the 20th in the lobby of City Hall.

The event was attended by approximately 100 people, including members of the Anyang Youth Participation Committee, Anyang-Gwacheon Office of Education, Anyang Private Kindergarten Association and other collaborating organizations and groups, National Assembly members, provincial and city council members, and citizens. Child representatives Kim Si-yoon and Lee Ji-an recited the Children's Rights Charter, and a sign performance was conducted where children shared their wishes for a ‘Child-Friendly Anyang’ written in their own handwriting.

In January 2023, the city reorganized its Child Welfare Team into the Child-Friendly Team as a dedicated department for children's rights, and in May of the same year, it amended the ordinance on the creation of a child-friendly city in Anyang, officially beginning the initiative. Last year, it established a mid- to long-term plan through 2028, and is currently implementing 32 key projects, including expanding play spaces through metaverse experience zones, strengthening children's rights education, and reinforcing child abuse prevention systems.

Mayor Choi Dae-ho stated, “The Child-Friendly City certification is the fruit of city administration that prioritizes children's rights and happiness,” and added, “I hope today's proclamation ceremony becomes the first step in opening a new chapter for Anyang, filled with children's laughter and dreams. We will continue to strengthen the foundation for a child-friendly city.”