Jinan promotes construction of child-friendly city

Jinan, capital of East China's Shandong province, has promoted child-friendly urban development with a decision made during its 18th People's Congress, the city's legislative body, local media reported.

The second session of the Standing Committee of Jinan's 18th People's Congress introduced a Resolution on Promoting the Construction of a Child-Friendly City in August 2022. The resolution demanded incorporating the concept of child-friendliness into the plan for the city's economic and social development. This decision has set an example across China.

On September 27, 2022, Jinan launched a child-friendly city construction program. The program calls for drafting a plan consistent with Jinan's needs. It expresses the aspirations of children, as well as integrating industrial development and the philosophy of openness and inclusiveness into the city's urban development.

Jinan has initiated many projects to fill various gaps and needs. For example, the Jinan women's federation and the city's market supervision bureau have jointly launched a child-friendly catering plan to match family demand for dining out with children.

They surveyed 6,003 families regarding child-friendly eateries and published the country's first-ever guide on promoting child-friendly catering. They also released the country's first-ever guide on safe travel to help create a safe environment for children's traveling.

Furthermore, Jinan unveiled various policies tailored to support underprivileged children. These policies include the Implementation Guidelines on Promoting the Development of Services for Infants and Younger Children Under Three Years Old, the Service Program for Rural Left-behind Children and Children in Need, and the Security Management Regulations for Elementary and Secondary Schools and Kindergartens.

Jinan's initiatives have won acclaim from residents and beyond, culminating in being named to the second batch of national child-friendly city construction pilot cities in April 2023.

In the past seven years, the city has completed 56 reforms centered on children, delivering practical benefits to children and their families.