Towards a new agenda for children in the Southern mediterranean countries

Building on the experience of the MONEE Project, the Centre's Mediterranean Project focuses on the well-being of children in nine countries in the Middle East and North Africa. While all have made substantial gains in social development since the 1960s, progress has been uneven between and within these countries and has faltered in some. Data on children exist in most, if not all, of these countries, but are not adequately disaggregated and analyzed, making it difficult to identify key issues, design policies, effectively target resources or assess the impact on children of existing programmes. The Project aims to build the capacity of national governments and institutions by strengthening systems of data collection and monitoring in such areas as health, education, juvenile justice, child labour and domestic violence. The Project is carried out in collaboration with the UNICEF Regional Office for the Middle East and North Africa, and UNICEF Country Offices throughout the region. The MEDIN Report provides a broad overview of the situation of children in nine countries of the southern Mediterranean basin focusing on four main areas: early childhood, basic education, adolescence and protection. The project examines the data gaps that undermine efforts to draw up a complete picture of child rights in these nine countries and aims to improve knowledge and action in favour of children in this important region.