For many of us, children are a gift to treasure. For some they are a burden or even an inconvenience. Yet, no matter whether they are seen as a gift or a burden, we tend to forget they are fully human and not some form of being in the process of becoming human. They have a mind of their own, with aspirations, potentials and rights that need to be acknowledged, respected and nurtured.

This is easier said than done. Our fast-changing society is putting pressure on individuals and families alike. We find ourselves hurrying from one task to another, at times unable to communicate properly, and maybe pressured to take decisions to make a living not focused on the wellbeing of ourselves and our loved ones.

Children are the most vulnerable to these changes, given that it is adults, who shape the environment in which they live and who take decisions that most affect them. Children need to be heard and not just seen. Loving them means listening to their voice and considering their point of view.

The Directorate of Child Protection Services is of course focused on the well-being of vulnerable children and the promotion of those children’s rights. To achieve these aims we have rapidly come to realise how important it is to support families in improving skills in communication with their children.

The upcoming Universal Children’s Day is an ideal opportunity for the Foundation to promote these objectives. This year the United Nations has chosen the theme 'Investing in our future means investing in our children'. From our end, to invest in our future and to keep children safe means to focus on awareness, education and the promotion of a safer environment.

First and foremost, for us, this means to be committed to professional development. It also means that we support and promote collaboration between parents and professionals, including educators, psychologists, the judiciary, the police and the health professional.  We work to empower children to detect risks and actively avoid them, while offering a safe place where they can be listened to. Equally we offer support to parents, empower them to positively parent their children, and collaborate with each other even if they might no longer live together.

A century ago, the League of Nations (predecessor to the United Nations) declared that humanity “owes to the child the best that it has to give,” while establishing the basic rights of the child. A hundred years later, we still struggle to give children what is due to them. There is a lot that still awaits to be done in the best interest of the child, yet we are confident that with the goodwill of professionals and parents alike we can commit to putting the child first by shifting our paradigms to treating children as full human beings.