Budget increased

Child protection summit to bring more contact points

Family Minister Susanne Raab and State Secretary for Youth Claudia Plakolm (both ÖVP) take part in the child protection summit, to which various NGOs are invited.(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

Child protection concepts must be implemented wherever children are being worked with. This was stated by Family Minister Susanne Raab and State Secretary for Youth Claudia Plakolm (both ÖVP) on Wednesday at the Federal Chancellery just before a child protection summit. There they will discuss with NGOs from the voluntary sector how child protection measures can be implemented in practice.

In order to promote child protection, the budget has been increased by more than half. A total of 1.2 million euros is available. Financial support is to be provided in particular for the expansion of contact points for children and young people as well as organizations working in the field of violence and victim protection. Following last year's child protection package with significantly harsher punishments for perpetrators, the focus will now also be placed on the pillars of prevention and victim protection.

Schools to be more involved
In this context, Raab and Plakolm also referred to the regulation on mandatory child protection concepts in schools announced on Tuesday. When children are abused in the private sphere, sports teachers or coaches are often the first to recognize the signs. "This is a sensorium that we want to use to protect children," explained Raab.

This is why we also work with those organizations "that work with children on a daily basis", said Plakolm. Child protection is a political issue. Four out of five children are abused in the private sphere. It is therefore important to teach volunteers how to recognize signs and act in case of suspicion.

Online area also in focus
A dedicated child protection unit against sexual violence in the digital world is already being developed. "In my view, we must continue to expand preventative measures to protect our children at the same pace as before, especially online," Plakolm emphasized on Tuesday. Child abuse does not only take place in the analog world, but increasingly in social media and via messenger services. "The new saferinternet.at project against sexual violence in the digital world will be a key building block in the fight against child abuse."

At the summit, the Austrian Child Protection Centers and the ECPAT association will present the progress made in setting up the "Quality Assurance Center for Child Protection". The independent "Quality Assurance Center for Child Protection" will be responsible for advising, awarding and recertifying child protection concepts. In future, associations and organizations will be able to have their child protection concepts reviewed and certified by this body. "This should also become a sign of quality for parents in particular and a visible sign for clubs and organizations that they have dealt with child protection and prevention particularly well," said Plakolm.