The Network of Organizations for Children of Serbia (MODS) has prepared a contribution to Serbia’s 2025 Progress Report, which the European Commission prepares annually as part of the European Union accession process.
To prepare this contribution, the MODS secretariat organized consultations with its member organizations through a questionnaire to collect key information on the challenges faced by children and organizations working to protect their rights. More than 20 MODS member organizations participated in developing this document, sharing their observations, analyses, and recommendations regarding the realization of children’s rights in Serbia.
The report highlights challenges and stagnation in the legislative and strategic framework for the protection of children’s rights. It particularly emphasizes the concerning situation regarding freedom of expression and child participation in public life, as well as the increasingly shrinking space for civil society organizations, which faced targeting and pressure during 2024 and early 2025.
Key points from the report include the lack of progress in adopting and implementing important laws, such as:
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The Law on the Rights of the Child and the Child Rights Ombudsman,
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amendments to the Family Law (including the prohibition of corporal punishment),
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ratification of the Third Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child,
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and the adoption of a new Law on Social Protection.
The document also highlights the need to re-establish the Council for the Rights of the Child, adopt a new National Strategy for the Rights of the Child, and urgently implement measures to improve the mental health system, inclusive education, digital protection, and child participation.
Special attention is given to the situation of marginalized and vulnerable groups of children — children with disabilities, Roma children, children without parental care, refugee and migrant children, and children victims of violence and exploitation — who continue to suffer serious forms of institutional discrimination and exclusion from support systems.
The report also stresses the need for the European Child Guarantee to be extended to accession countries, including Serbia, to provide a systemic response to child poverty and social exclusion.
You can download the full document in English here.