Ladies and Gentlemen,
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the signing of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. I am pleased that numerous national and European strategies are yielding results and that the situation of children is steadily improving.
In my address, I would like to focus on children in out-of-home care.
It is estimated that there are as many as 660,000 such children in Europe. The situation varies from country to country, but in Poland, for example, we still have over 17,000 children in institutional care and 58,000 in foster families.
These children struggle daily with a lack of emotional stability, a low sense of belonging and close bonds, and they also find it difficult to receive sufficient individual attention. This results in problems such as anxiety, depression, and feelings of worthlessness, which in turn affect their entire adult lives.
I would like to emphasize here the role of the European Social Fund+, which has proven highly effective in this area. I am convinced that this is the direction we should take. Of course, general strategies and a holistic approach are important, but it is concrete actions and funding that yield real results.
That is why I believe that regional policy, including the ESF+, must be able to support such initiatives and have the necessary resources. I urge Commissioner Fitto to take this aspect into account when planning cohesion policy after 2027.