Germany's 2024 Biennial report on the implementation of the Child Guarantee – an overview

Three years after the adoption of the European Child Guarantee, EU Member States are releasing the first report on its implementation. The reports offer an overview of the context, target groups, and services established to execute the European Child Guarantee’s National Action Plans. Additionally, they include sections covering indicators, financing details, and insights and conclusions gleaned from the implementation process.

The German Government submitted its 2024 Biennial report on the implementation of the Child Guarantee in December 2024.

The report focuses on:

• Early childhood education and care: To boost participation in ECEC, the Act on the Further Development of Quality and Participation in Child Daycare was adopted.

• Education and school-based activities: Measures include the Startchancen programme (Equal opportunities), supporting 4,000 schools, and the federal-state initiative Schule macht stark (School as a source of empowerment). The Act on All-day Support for Children of Primary School Age (GaFöG) supports children aged 6 to 10 from the 2026/27 school year onwards.

• Healthy nutrition: The National Strategy for the Promotion of Breastfeeding, along with other initiatives to encourage healthy eating, targets families from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

• Healthcare: The federal government is promoting support for children and young people from families affected by addiction and mental health challenges. The children’s health portal offers comprehensive health and prevention information for parents, paediatricians, and educators.

• Adequate housing: Measures focus on ensuring affordable housing, tackling housing exclusion, and enhancing local infrastructure. A National Action Plan has been adopted to tackle housing exclusion. Federal states are obliged to establish and maintain the necessary reception facilities for the accommodation of asylum seekers.

• Social inclusion: Child benefit and the child supplement have been significantly increased.

Eurochild and its members will continue to call on Member States to release their biennial reports and work to ensure the Child Guarantee National Action Plans help end child poverty.

This summary provides key highlights from the Biennial report on the Child Guarantee implementation in Germany published in December 2024. It is not exhaustive or evaluative.