On 24^th to 25^th November, Plan China and Shaanxi Women’s Federation launched the Community Child Center Pilot Project and training in Xi’an.The ceremony was attended by Mark Leighton, the Country Director of Plan China, Liu Lige, the Chairperson of Shaanxi Women’s Federation, Liu Bing, the Programme Support Manager of Plan China and leaders from the County-level Women’s Federation, Health Bureau and Civil Affairs Bureau as well as  representatives from other Plan’s programme units.

Mark Leighton, the Country Director of Plan China, said at the project launching ceremony, “In recent years, China has made remarkable achievements in meeting Millennium Development Goals and in improving children's rights to survival and development, as well as making historical progress in reducing child mortality, malnutrition rate and promoting compulsory education. However, according to the statistics from the two baseline surveys in 2008 and 2010 carried out by Plan China and institutes, there is still much space for the children in our rural programme area to develop in nutrition, education and development, etc. Plan China and the Shaanxi Women’s Federation, with Plan’s main working approach, “Child Centered Community Development”and combing cooperation experience during the recent ten years, make joint efforts to conduct the pilot project and popularize the Community Child Center Project.

Madam Liu Lige stated, “As China’s economy grows, government paid great attention to realizing child rights. To deepen and practice government’s policy and measures, especially benefit the children from poor rural areas, Shaanxi Women’s Federation and Plan China cooperated in the implementation of Community Child Center Pilot Project in Plan China’s programme units in Shaanxi in order to create a public service platform for children and explore the Children Centered Community Development and a new approach to enhance the roles of women and Women’s Federation in improving the construction of “harmonious community” in the new countryside and enhance one’s self-development.

It is stated that there will be 13 community child centers established by June 2012 and the service will benefit 70% of the targeted population in related communities. On 24^th and 25^th November the participants also received training on children nutrition, health, education, children’s psychology treatment as well as project management.