The Joint Human Rights Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina (PABiH), with the support of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the European Union (EU), organized a conference on September 3, 2017, entitled "Every Child Needs a Family", with the aim of encouraging representatives of the legislative and executive branches to advance reforms in the field of child protection, especially children without parental care and children at risk of losing parental care. Numerous experts, academic professors, representatives of social welfare institutions, foster parents, and young people who have left care gathered in the Blue Hall of the Parliament.

The Representative and Head of the EU Delegation to BiH, Ambassador Lars – Gunnar Wigemark, and the UNICEF Representative in BiH, Geeta Narayan, emphasized that children under three years of age and children with disabilities are at the greatest risk of losing parental care and are the most numerous among children placed in institutions. This disappointing data was the motive for two representatives of the IC “Lotos” to participate in this conference. Fatma Bulić, a young employee and activist of the Information Center “Lotos”, speaking about her personal experience, emphasized the importance of support that a family with a child with a disability needs in order to stay together, and that the family environment is the best environment for the development of all children, especially children with disabilities. Sandra Marković pointed out that placement in institutions solely on the basis of disability is a form of discrimination, and that according to Article 19 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the right to independent living and living in the community is fully satisfied only within the family circle. The conference was deemed successful and attracted significant media attention. 

The conclusions will be presented to the highest legislative body of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in order to continue the deinstitutionalization process. This conference also started the public campaign "Every child needs a family".