The Division of Inclusive Social Development of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs organizes every two year and Expert Group Meeting (EGM) on Family Issues. The EGM brings together experts from the academia, government, private sector and non governmental organizations. The experts are invited to provide policy recommend to the UN-System and the Member States on how to tackle various challenges the family unit faces around the world. Jose A. Vázquez, has been part of the UN EGM on Family in 2018 and most recently in 2020. He represents the International Federation for Family Development (IFFD) to the United Nations Headquarters in NY. He is also external collaborator of the Institute of Culture and Society. University of Navarra (ICS)
Historically,
parenting education has been an important tool for parents and caregivers in
their child rearing efforts. It might not have always been known with this
term, but it is certain that from one generation to another it has been
informally transmitted a set of guidelines, comprehensive education and
training of parents and caregivers. The shared priority has been children well-being
and risk prevention.[1]
Recently
and in a more formal way, civil society at large has played a significant role
in supporting parents, improving their skill-building capacities, promoting
research projects and advocating for the recognition of parenting education at
the local and the global level.[2]
Although parenting education is a relatively novel term in the international
fora, there is substantial evidence that it is a useful and cost-effective tool
to improve parent-child relationships, reduce child-problem behaviors and
prevent maltreatment.[3]
In some cases, they are referred as family-strengthening programmes or comes
together as of parenting education asn support,[4]
but they all include a set of tools and activities oriented to improving how
parents approach and execute their role by increasing child-rearing resources
including information, knowledge, skills, social support and competencies.[5]
It definitely calls governments and other stakeholders for recognition, while
reinforcing the mission of the family unit as a cornerstone of child wellbeing
and social development.[6]
This
paper considers civil society as all stakeholders supporting and assisting
families’ and caregivers’ capacities in regard to child development, including
through comprehensive education, training, promoting positive parenting and
enabling safe environments.[7]
It is critical that perspectives shared by civil society are taken into account
to improve policy design, implementation and evaluation.[8]
With countries in mind, international institutions have enriched their policy
reports and recommendations with valuable civil society perspectives on
parenting education programmes.[9]
In most cases, such programmes are designed to advice about health and
nutritional issues, early simulations, child rights, gender issues and the
importance of community involvement in children's wellbeing.[10]
Thus, innovative solutions and evidence-based recommendations can enrich
partnerships for the wellbeing of children and prevention of violent behavior.[11]
A
rapid transformation has reshaped the role of parents and caregivers. Parenting
education is not only mothering or fathering anymore, nor a skill required just
by progenitors, but shared and acquired by grandparents and siblings alike.[12]
In this paper the structure will follow parenting education landmarks of civil
society perspectives and growing legitimacy in global policy making. They all
have provided international organizations, governments and policymakers a
better assessment of household realities and their variety of challenges.
Perspectives turned into
policies
In
2014, the Declaration of the Civil Society on the Occasion of the 20th
Anniversary of the International Year of the Family marked a turning point for
parenting education and its formal recognition in the international fora.[13]
A large number of civil society organizations formally pledge to integrate a
family perspective in social policy design[14].
In line with the the objectives of the anniversary, their claims included
intergenerational solidarity, parenting education programmes; child-care
provisions; psychological wellbeing of children and youth; prevention of
violence, addictions and juvenile delinquency; school to work transitions and
young adults’ economic security to facilitate family formation and stability;
and the support of older members of families.[15]
Since
then, civil society perspectives on parenting education and support have
enriched various efforts to improve the role of parents and caregivers
regarding child rights, wellbeing and social development. Parenting education
programmes have shown to be instrumental at reducing several risk factors
increasing the likelihood of violence against children within their families,
such as family poverty, parental unemployment and low levels of parental
education. Aged and staged approach in parenting education builds capacity on
parents of typical and appropriate behaviours of newborns, toddlers,
preschoolers and school-age children, as well as appropriate caregiver
responses.[16]
As
a result, a myriad of references on parenting education have been included and
have gained awareness in UN Agencies research projects, UN Secretary General’s
reports and national policy frameworks on family, child and development.[17]
For instance, in 2015, UNICEF country offices, according to their evidence,
indicated that NGOs are as important as the state as providers in many regions
of the world, especially in offering parenting education and support.[18]
The same year, the Secretary General’s report included various parenting
education programmes implemented by countries as conducive to the achievement
of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, references that have replicated
since on following reports.[19]
Moving
into 2016, SOS Children Villages, experts on family-strengthening programmes,
parenting skills and family-separation prevention interventions, linked the
vulnerability of children to the lack of parenting skills of their parents and
caregivers.[20]
In 2017, the Kenyan Government, in consultation with several civil society
partners, associated family stability with responsible parenting.[21]
Also, the European Union launched the largest research study with
‘FamiliesAndSocieties’, with several references to the role of both parents in
upbringing children.[22]
Later that year, the Report of the Third Committee on the Rights of the Child
included references to parenting education in relation to strategies for the
prevention and elimination of all forms of violence against children.[23]
Finally,
between 2017 and 2018, Member States adopted by consensus a groundbreaking
resolution on the Follow-up to the twentieth anniversary of the International
Year of the Family and beyond. The General Assembly left behind a resolution in
stagnation for almost a decade[24]
and formally “encouraged to invest in family policies and programmes that
promote strong intergenerational interactions, such as intergenerational living
arrangements and parenting education, in an effort to promote inclusive
urbanization, intergenerational solidarity and social cohesion”.[25]
The way forward
In
addition to the institutional recognition of parenting education and the ample
response from non-governmental organizations, other institutions have also
played a significant role. Early in 2019, the New York Times announced the
launch of their new Parenting Section. The section covers issues related to
fertility and pregnancy, babies, kids and the life of parents with them. The
editor committed to help parents with evidence-based solutions, relying on the
deep reporting of journalists and the advice of vetted experts.[26]
The
richest countries were called to the spotlight with the report on
family-friendly policies in the OECD and EU. The study suggested that there is
scope for those nations to improve their family policies and collect better
data.[27]
Later on, UN-Women shared a report examining how the transformations in
families impact women’s rights. It proposed an innovative and affordable
family-friendly package of policies together with the recognition of the role
of grandparents and kin at home.[28]
In this regard, the authors illustrate that grandmothers often carry out
domestic and care work and, when possible, also share their assets and
pensions.[29]
Late
in 2019, following the ‘First-ever Parenting Month’[30]
governments and businesses were called to invest more in policies that give
parents the time and support they need to raise happy and healthy children
under the motto “Early Moments Matter”. Further on, UNICEF hosted the
Family-Friendly Policies Summit: Redesigning the workplace. This unprecedented
initiative fixed the commitment of many public and private actors to procure
paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, childcare and parenting education
for parents around the world.[31]
Most
recently, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, a historical celebration of the
International Day of the Families brought together substantial contributions[32].
First, the launch of the Families, Family Policy and Sustainable Development
Goals Global Report. The report shows how family policies can work to affect
the Goals; how the perspectives and support of non-government actors can
contribute to it; and how family attributes impact those interventions. The
report is designed for policy makers and practitioners as a guide in their daily
work.
Second,
a report on family-oriented priorities, policies and programmes in the
implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as reported in
the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) of 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. The report
analyzes 127 VNRs submitted by 114 countries, where almost 90% of the Member
States make specific references to family and consider family policies useful
for achieving SDG1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 11 and 16.
In
the coming years, in addition to sharing good practices of parenting education
at home, there is a growing necessity to sustain with evidence, data and
literature review the social benefits of programmes aimed at improving the
competences of parents, grandparents, caregivers and kinship care, especially
after all the attention brought up to their role in lockdown situations due to
the recent pandemic[33].
The
evaluation and redesign of policies depend largely on how civil society
perspectives and the implementation of various parenting education policies is
followed. For many parents and caregivers, their main contribution may not be
something they do, but someone they raise.
United Nations Representative
International Federation for Family Development
[1]
Resolution on the ‘Follow-up to the twentieth anniversary of the International
Year of the Family and beyond’, A/RES/74/124, https://undocs.org/A/RES/74/124.
[2]
Robben, M. (2014). Parenting around the world: same task, same effort,
different solutions. Family Futures. pp.
21-23.
[3]
Gardner F., Montgomery P., Knerr W. (2016) Transporting Evidence-Based
Parenting Programs for Child Problem Behavior (Age 3–10) Between Countries:
Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis, Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent
Psychology, 45:6, 749-762. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15374416.2015.1015134
[4]
Eurochild (2013) Family and Parenting Support in Challenging Times, Eurochild,
Brussels, www.eurochild.org/fileadmin/public/05_Library/Thematic_priorities/03_Family_Parenting_Support/Eurochild/Eurochild_FPS_round_table_7_May_2013_Report.pdf. SOS
Children Villages International (2017) International Annual Report. https://www.sos-childrensvillages.org/getmedia/1d7ebfd6-8ed6-43c1-9892-393a0f42355c/SOS_CHILDRENS_VILLAGES_ANNUAL_REPORT_2017_WEB.pdf.
[5] Daly,
M., Bray, R., Bruckauf, Z. Byrne, J., Margaria, A., Pec’nik, N., Samms-Vaughan,
M. (2015). Family and Parenting Support: Policy and Provision in a Global
Context, Innocenti Insight, UNICEF Office of Research, Florence. https://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/01%20family_support_layout_web.pdf.
[6] Ward,
C, Wessels, I, Lachman, J, Hutchings, J, Cluver, L, Kassanjee, R, Nhapi, R,
Little, F, Gardner, F. (2020). Parenting for Lifelong Health for Young
Children: a randomized controlled trial of a parenting program in South Africa
to prevent harsh parenting and child conduct problems. Child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines, 61 (4),
pp. 503 - 512. Piquero, A., Farrington, D., Welsh, B., Tremblay, R., &
Jennings, W. (2009). Effects of early family/parent training programs on
antisocial behavior and delinquency. Journal
of Experimental Criminology, 5, 83–120.
[8]
Bogenschneider, K. (2014). Family Policy Matters: How Policymaking Affects
Families and What Professionals Can Do. United States: Taylor & Francis.,
p. 33.
[9]
Declaration of the Civil Society on the Occasion of the 20th Anniversary of the
International Year of the Family (2014), A/69/61, https://undocs.org/A/69/61
[10]
UNESCO Office Bangkok and Regional Bureau for Education in Asia and the Pacific
(2019). Regional guidelines on innovative financing mechanisms and partnerships
for early childhood care and education (ECCE). https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000371189. WHO
(2016). INSPIRE: Seven strategies for ending violence against children. Geneva,
Switzerland: WHO. UNESCO (2011). UNESCO‐UNICEF ECCE Policy research series
regional desk review report Early Childhood care and Education Teacher Policies
and Quality Standards for Community-Based Programmes in the Asia-Pacific
Region. https://bangkok.unesco.org/sites/default/files/assets/ECCE/publications/UNESCO-UNICEF_ECCE_Desk_Review_-FINAL_WORKING_DOCUMENT_18_March_cover_only_01.pdf
[11]
Bogenschneider, K. (2014). Family Policy Matters: How Policymaking Affects
Families and What Professionals Can Do. United States: Taylor & Francis,
pp.35-37. PARENTING IN AFRICA NETWORK, Mbugua, S. (Editor), Muriithi, M.,
Muthui, I., Ogeda, J. (2015), Opportunities for Strengthening Families Through
Positive Discipline, https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/node/9347/pdf/opportunities_for_strengthening_families_through_positive_discipline_kap_study.pdf
[12]
Panter Brick, C., Burgess, A., Eggerman, M., McAllister, F., Pruett, K., &
Leckman, J. F. (2014). Practitioner review: Engaging fathers–Recommendations
for a game change in parenting interventions based on a systematic review of
the global evidence. Journal of Child
Psychology and Psychiatry, 55(11), 1187–1212. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24980187/
[13]
Resolution on Preparations for and observance of the twentieth anniversary of
the International Year of the Family, A/C.3/67/L.12/Rev.1.
[14] The
civil society declaration on the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the
International Year, proposed and disseminated by the International Federation
for Family Development, was sponsored by 27 international entities and signed
by over 542 civil society representatives from 285 national organizations, as
well as by elected officials, academics and individuals.", A/70/61-E/2015/3,
45, https://www.undocs.org/A/70/61
[15]
Declaration of the Civil Society on the Occasion of the 20th Anniversary of the
International Year of the Family (2014), http://www.familyperspective.org/decl/DecBook.pdf. Cfr.
European Expert Group Meeting “Confronting family poverty and social exclusion;
ensuring work-family balance; advancing social integration and
intergenerational solidarity in Europe” (Brussels, 6–8June 2012),
Recommendations.
[16]
Celebration of the twentieth anniversary of the International Year of the
Family in 2014. Report of the Secretary-General, A/70/61. Crepaldi, C.,
Molinuevo, D. (2013). Parenting support in Europe, European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working
Conditions (Eurofound), https://www.researchgate.net/publication/302959472_Parenting_support_in_Europe
[17]
Ponzetti, J. (2015). Evidence-based Parenting Education: A Global Perspective,
Routledge. SAVE THE CHILDREN (2012). Strengthening Families: Save the Children
programs in support of child care and parenting policies, https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/sites/default/files/documents/7049.pdf
[18] Daly,
M., Bray, R., Bruckauf, Z. Byrne, J., Margaria, A., Pec’nik, N., Samms-Vaughan,
M. (2015). Family and Parenting Support: Policy and Provision in a Global
Context, Innocenti Insight, UNICEF Office of Research, Florence. https://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/01%20family_support_layout_web.pdf.
[19]
Implementation of the Objectives of the International Year of the Family and
its follow-up processes Report of the Secretary-General (2015-2020), https://undocs.org/A/71/61, https://undocs.org/A/72/166, https://undocs.org/A/73/61, https://undocs.org/A/74/61, https://undocs.org/A/75/61.
[20] SOS
Children Villages International (2016). Child at risk: The most vulnerable
children, who they are and why they are at risk.
https://www.sos-childrensvillages.org/getmedia/99ed8967-5f6c-4765-89c7-5d3822b08fbe/Child-at-Risk-Report-2016-ECOM-for-web.pdf.
[21]
Ministry of East African Community, Labour and Social Protection (Draft).
Government of Kenya (2017). National Family Promotion and Protection Policy, https://www.socialprotection.go.ke/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/DRAFT-FAMILY-POLICY-APRIL-2017.pdf
[22]
Evertsson M., Boye K., Erman J. (2015). Fathers on call –A study on the sharing
of care work among parents in Sweden. A mixed methods approach, Changing families and sustainable societies:
Policy contexts and diversity over the life course and across generations. European
Union's Seventh Framework Programme. http://www.familiesandsocieties.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/WP27EvertssonEtAl2015.pdf
[23]
Promotion and protection of the rights of children. Report of the Third Committee
(2017). A/72/435, https://undocs.org/A/72/435
[24] The
Resolution on the ‘Follow-up to the twentieth anniversary of the International
Year of the Family and beyond’ was not changed since the mid 1990’s from its 8
operative points. Since 2018, it has 12 operative points pertaining to a
variety of topics and realities affecting the family unit worldwide.
[25]
Resolution on the ‘Follow-up to the twentieth anniversary of the International
Year of the Family and beyond’, (2017). A/RES/74/124, https://undocs.org/A/RES/72/145
[26] New
York Times (2019). We’re Introducing a New Parenting Section, and We Want to
Hear From You. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/19/reader-center/parenting-section-tiny-victories.html. New
York Times (2019). Introducing our Parenting Team. https://www.nytco.com/press/introducing-parenting-team/
[27]
Chzhen, Y., Gromada A., Rees, G. (2019), Are the world’s richest countries
family friendly? Policy in the OECD and EU, UNICEF Office of Research,
Florence. https://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/Family-Friendly-Policies-Research_UNICEF_%202019.pdf.
[28]
Ingersoll-Dayton, B., Punpuing, S., Tangchonlatip, K., Yakas, L.. (2018).
Pathways to Grandparents’ Provision of Care in Skipped-Generation Households in
Thailand. Ageing and Society, 38, pp.
1429–1452.
[29] UN
Women (2019). Progress of the world’s women 2019–2020: Families in a changing
world. https://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/library/publications/2019/progress-of-the-worlds-women-2019-2020-en.pdf?la=en&vs=3512
[30]
UNICEF (2019). Press release: UNICEF Starts First-ever Parenting Month, https://www.unicef.org/bulgaria/en/press-releases/unicef-starts-first-ever-parenting-month.
[31]
UNICEF (2019). Call to action: Investing in family-friendly policies. https://www.unicef.org/early-childhood-development/family-friendly-policies
[32]
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Development: Copenhagen & Beijing+25”, https://www.un.org/development/desa/family/international-day-of-families/2020-2.html
[33]
United Nations (2020), Policy Brief: The Impact of COVID-19 on children, https://www.un.org/sites/un2.un.org/files/policy_brief_on_covid_impact_on_children_16_april_2020.pdf.
United Nations (2020), Policy Brief:The Impact of COVID-19 on older persons, https://unsdg.un.org/sites/default/files/2020-05/Policy-Brief-The-Impact-of-COVID-19-on-Older-Persons.pdf
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