Families, inequality, and child well-being are deeply connected. This report, commissioned by UN DESA for the International Day of Families, examines how global and regional patterns of inequality shape family formation, early childhood and child outcomes in the context of the 2030 Agenda. It analyses trends in income inequality, poverty, fertility, under-five mortality, education and broader family well-being, showing how disadvantage can be transmitted across generations when families are not adequately supported.

This technical brief highlights parenting support strategies and interventions that can benefit parents and help them create better spaces for children with developmental delays and disabilities to thrive. The brief includes data on children with developmental delays and disabilities and features country examples from around the world.

This large-scale study across eight African countries finds that the Parenting for Lifelong Health programme is associated with significant reductions in physical and emotional abuse, improved parenting practices, and better mental health outcomes for both caregivers and adolescents. It demonstrates that evidence-based parenting interventions can be effectively delivered at scale—even in humanitarian contexts—while maintaining strong positive impacts.

The UNICEF Caring for the Caregiver package is a counselling approach and behaviour change intervention that can be integrated into routine home-visiting by frontline workers, in a demand-responsive way, at a population level. This study aimed to evaluate caregiver outcomes and explore intervention experiences from the package in six low-income and middle-income countries.

This brief presents findings from a global mapping of parenting programmes that aim to prevent violence against children and against women while advancing gender equality. It offers practical guidance for policymakers, programme designers, and implementers on how to develop, scale, and strengthen parenting interventions that promote safer, more equitable family environments.

From trusted information and peer support to access to services and emerging AI-enabled tools, digital innovation is reshaping how families seek support, connect with communities, and navigate everyday challenges. This playbook is a practical framework developed by a Digital Expert Group to help governments, practitioners, innovators, and partners design more human-centered, equitable, and scalable digital support ecosystems for families. 

Parents living through conflict, displacement, and humanitarian crises faced extraordinary pressures that affected both their own wellbeing and their children’s development. This Global Parenting Initiative webinar brought together global and field-level perspectives to explore how parenting and psychosocial support could be better aligned within humanitarian systems.

This article explores the parenting support needs of young mothers in Aotearoa New Zealand who grew up in out-of-home care, highlighting how their childhood experiences shape their access to and perceptions of support. It finds that these mothers face significant barriers and fears in engaging with services, underscoring the need for specialized, independent parenting support as part of after-care.

In 2025, UNICEF and UNFPA conducted a national review of parenting programmes in Moldova to assess their role in addressing violence against children and women and to inform more effective, gender-transformative interventions. The study provides evidence to support the development of a Theory of Change and evaluation framework for strengthening prevention efforts.

This article explores how well parent advocacy training programs prepare advocates for their roles in the child welfare system, drawing on perspectives from advocates, parents, and child protective services workers. It finds that while foundational training is valuable, more comprehensive, experiential, and collaborative approaches—especially in areas like legal knowledge, mental health, and system navigation—are needed to better equip advocates and strengthen family engagement outcomes.