Improving Child Protection Services (MO0037)

CHALLENGE Protecting children from abuse, violence, exploitation, negligence neglect, requires the intervention of various public services, according to the needs of each child, as follows: • Identification and reception of claims ; • Prompt assistance in case of medical and social emergencies ; • Reporting to the judicial authorities if needed ; • Evaluating the social situation of the child and the family ; • Provide medical-psychological and social support, and help with educational and social inclusion ; • Monitoring and evaluation of the child’s progress, and reporting. The field experience has revealed some disparities between the different regions in providing services as well as the lack of coordination with programs implemented by different actors. Also, has revealed the lack of qualified human resources and the increasing need for a set of mechanisms and tools that facilitate the coordination and exchange of information between the actors concerned at the territorial level.

PROPOSED SOLUTIONS The Ministry of Solidarity, Social Development, Equality and Family is working on the implementation of the Integrated Territorial Child Protection Units in eight (8) pilot provinces, with the objective of extending them to all provinces in Morocco. This is essential in order to strengthen the protection system, as it achieves convergence between judicial, medical, psychological, social and educational services, as well as monitoring and evaluation processes. This is achieved in accordance with a unified protocol that defines the protection process, as well as the services intended for each phase of protection. The unified protocol also clarifies the roles and responsibilities of the public departments involved, as well as the procedures for child orientation as per the map of actors and institutions. In this context, the following actions will be implemented in the pilot provinces: • Creation of Provincial Committees for the Protection of Children, composed of representatives of the decentralized governmental departments and institutions, and also gives the option to representatives of justice, Public Minister and civil society organizations in its work ; • Establishing Centers dedicated to the protection of children, in compliance with the terms of reference issued by the Ministry, specifying the missions and functions of the center, human resources profiles and the building specifications and standards ; • Introduce an integrated information system enabling the supervision of the child. This system will be used by the local actors involved in the protection process ; • Elaboration and implementation of a training program in the field of child protection intended for relevant actors within the targeted provinces ; • Participatory elaboration of tools for monitoring the Integrated Territorial Child Protection Units. Supporting the convergence of multisectoral interventions and assisting the involved territorial actors to adopt these tools, i.e: » Diagnostic guide for child protection structures and services at the provincial level » Guide for elaborating provincial child protection action plans ; » Child Protection Process ; » Child Protection Framework Protocol ; » National reference framework for a standardized assessment of situations of danger in child protection.

EXPECTED RESULTS The pilot provinces shall have : • Structures and tools to coordinate child protection programs and services according to the needs of the region. • Qualified and specialized human resources in the field of social assistance to children in need of protection • Integrated and effective local structures and services in the field of child protection • Updated information and statistical data on the situation of children in need of protection

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS Number of provincial committees established ; • Number of Child Protection Support Centers established ; • Progress rate of the development of the integrated information system for monitoring children throughout the protection circuit; • Number of completed training sessions ; • Number of participants in the training sessions.

IMPACT INDICATORS Number of tools developed for the management of territorial mechanisms and convergence of multisectoral interventions .

See action plan for milestone activities.

Action Plan Review

Commitment 13. Improving the Quality of Child Protection Public Services

● Verifiable: Yes

● Does it have an open government lens? Yes

● Potential for results: Modest

Results Report

Commitment 13. Improving the Quality of Child Protection Public Services

Commitment 13, led by the Ministry of Solidarity, Social Development, Equality, and Family, aimed to improve child protection services. While implementation progress was made, limited consultation with civil society meant that this reform lacked a strong open government lens. 

The government reported that across provinces by the end of 2023, 81 child protection committees were created, 83 Child Protection Support Centers established, and 41 Child Protection Units created in partnership with 41 nongovernment organizations (milestones 1, 2 and 7). The availability of equipment and human resources varies among centers. [66] However, the IRM did not find documented evidence for these milestones, and it was not clear what progress was made during the implementation period, between August 2021 and 2023, as this commitment is part of a larger reform spanning from 2015 to 2025.

The government created tools and guidance to support child protective services, with little input from civil society. The government published tools and guides (milestone 3, 4, and 5). ^[67] The development of materials coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic thereby limiting the government's ability to consult civil society. ^[68] According to the Head of the Service for the Protection of Children in Difficult Situations, consultations were conducted with government sectors, relevant national institutions, as well as judicial authorities and the public prosecutor's office, due to the sensitive nature of the subject. ^[69] Each step requires a prefectural order, and the respect for the processing of personal data is integrated into a circuit of child protection. Provincial child protection training was provided (milestone 8). ^[70] The government also held a meeting in October 2022 with civil society to report on implementation of the Child Protection Policy. ^[71]

Progress was made on development of an integrated information system for child monitoring in the protection process (milestone 9) ^[72]. The terms of reference were shared, but major delays, particularly in creating databases for Integrated Territorial Child Protection Units, were noted, according to the Minister ^[73]. While progress was made on delivering a critical government service, this commitment ultimately lacked an open government approach to implementation.