“We are obliged to ensure a happy childhood in which each child is free to create and to fulfill their dreams and realize their potential,” President Maia Sandu said in connection with the International Children’s Day, IPN reports.

According to President Sandu, at the European Political Community Summit today, they will consider how to restore and maintain peace and security on the continent so that the children enjoy a future free from threats. “The children are the most important citizens of Planet Earth. The future of the world is in the children’s hands, while the children’s future is in our hands and this future starts today,” stated Maia Sandu.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the number of children has decreased continuously. On January 1, 2023, the children aged between 0 and 17 in Moldova numbered 539,400 or 21.5% of the total population with ordinary residence. The number of newborns in 2022 was 27,000, down 8.1% on a year before. The birth rate in 2022 was 10.6 newborns per 1,000 people, being the lowest in the last five years.

According to the National House of Social Insurance, the number of persons who benefitted from the one-off childbirth allowance of 10,068 lei on January 1, 2023 stood at 32,100, down 9.6% on January 1, 2019. Of these, 15,100 were socially insured persons, while 17,000 were socially uninsured persons.

The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection said that about 13,200 children in situations of risk were recorded in 2022. Out of these, 67.2% were from rural areas. The boys represented 51.5% of the children in situations of risk.