From Crisis to Hope: How Moldova Revolutionised Child Protection with Technology and Determination
How a small NGO in Eastern Europe transformed child protection services and became a beacon of hope for vulnerable children and Barnahus interview recording across the region.
A Vision Born from Urgency
In 1997, when Daniela Sîmboteanu founded the National Centre for Child Abuse Prevention (CNPAC) in Moldova, the initial plan was modest: conduct some prevention seminars in schools and wrap up the project within a few months. Twenty-seven years later, she sits as CEO of an organisation that has fundamentally transformed how Moldova protects its most vulnerable citizens – children who have experienced violence.
“We quickly realised that the phenomenon of violence against children was very widely present in our society,” Ms Sîmboteanu reflects on those early days. What started as a short-term prevention project has evolved into something much more significant: Moldova’s first Barnahus (Children’s House), a revolutionary approach to child protection.
The statistics that drove CNPAC’s evolution are sobering. Each year, over 1,000 children in Moldova become victims or witnesses of various crimes, with approximately 400 cases involving sexual violence. For these children, the traditional justice system often meant enduring a process that could be as traumatic as the original crime itself.
Summary
The Challenge: Moldova’s National Centre for Child Abuse Prevention (CNPAC) faced a justice system that unintentionally re-traumatised child victims. Over 1,000 children annually had to retell their experiences multiple times – to police, prosecutors, and in court – causing re-traumatisation and producing inconsistent evidence that undermined prosecutions.
The Solution: After achieving legislative reform in 2012 mandating audio-video recorded interviews in child-friendly environments, CNPAC launched Moldova’s first Barnahus (Children’s House) in 2019. They selected Davidhorn’s Indico Software Recorder system for its reliability, court-ready evidence quality, and PACE compliance, installing systems in both Chișinău and Bălți.
The Results:
- Child Welfare: Children now give testimony once in a safe, supportive environment instead of enduring multiple interviews
- Evidence Quality: Legal professionals report significantly improved evidence quality, with some now travelling from southern Moldova specifically to use the Barnahus facilities
- Systemic Change: Moldova became the first country in the post-Soviet space to implement the Barnahus model, setting a precedent for the entire region
- Professional Capacity: 28 certified interviewers trained nationwide, conducting over 400 specialised interviews annually
- Sustainable Funding: Government now funds Barnahus as an essential state service, ensuring long-term sustainability
- Ripple Effect: Other victim service providers across Moldova – including women’s shelters and UN Women projects – adopted similar recording technology, inspired by CNPAC’s success
Key Quote: “Our cooperation with Davidhorn is super smooth and we are very happy with it. From the moment the equipment was installed, we used it. We didn’t have any difficulties.” – Diana Țeberneac, Child Interviewer, CNPAC
“For us at Davidhorn, it has been an honour to contribute to such a groundbreaking child protection initiative in Moldova. Technology alone will not create change, but when combined with the dedication and vision of partners like CNPAC, it becomes a powerful enabler.” – Stig Knutsen, Chief Partner Officer, Davidhorn
Implementation: Seamless installation and ongoing support from Davidhorn, with local IT partnership ensuring rapid resolution of any technical issues. The reliable technology has been instrumental in building professional confidence in the new system and proving its worth in courtrooms, transforming initial resistance into advocacy amongst legal professionals.
The System That Failed Children
“Before 2012, child victims often had to repeat their testimony several times — first to the police officer, then to the prosecutor, and later in court. Each new interview meant reliving the trauma, and inconsistencies could appear simply because the child was exhausted or frightened. We understood that the system itself was unintentionally causing harm, which made the reform not only necessary but urgent,” says Ms Sîmboteanu.
This was the reality in Moldova’s traditional legal system – a bureaucratic maze that didn’t prioritise child welfare and evidence gathering.
Irina Sandu, CNPAC’s Head of Programmes, puts it clearly: “Unfortunately, not all children in Moldova yet benefit from hearing procedures conducted in child-friendly, properly equipped environments that meet established quality standards. This is precisely the area we strive to improve.”
This commitment continues to guide the organisation’s mission – to advocate for and support the systemic changes needed to ensure that every child has access to safe, adapted, and trauma-informed environments during judicial processes.
Building the Foundation for Change
CNPAC’s transformation of Moldova’s child protection system didn’t happen overnight. It required a methodical, decade-spanning approach that combined grassroots service delivery with high-level legislative advocacy.
The organisation first established credibility through direct service provision. In 2003, with support from the Open Society Institute, they created Moldova’s first specialised centre for psychological rehabilitation of child victims. This wasn’t just about providing services – it was about learning what worked and building the evidence base that would later convince policymakers and professionals to embrace radical change.
Since 2006, CNPAC has expanded to offer accompaniment services for child victims in courts, giving them firsthand experience of the system’s shortcomings. This ground-level understanding proved invaluable when they began advocating for legislative reforms.
The breakthrough came through international collaboration. Working with partners such as the OAK Foundation and the World Childhood Foundation, and drawing inspiration from successful models in Iceland and other Nordic countries, CNPAC launched a regional campaign for child-friendly justice. The goal was ambitious: to completely restructure how Moldova’s legal system interacted with child victims.
Legislative Victory: Changing the Law
In 2012, CNPAC achieved what many thought impossible: Moldova’s Parliament introduced special articles in the Criminal Proceeding Code specifically addressing the rights of child victims. The new legislation mandated that children who were victims of sexual crimes, domestic violence, or human trafficking must be interviewed under special conditions by specially trained professionals.
Crucially, the law also required that all such interviews be recorded using audio-video technology – a requirement that would later prove essential for ensuring evidence quality and preventing re-traumatisation through repeated questioning.
“This was stipulated in legislation,” Ms Sîmboteanu notes with evident pride. The mandatory recording requirement wasn’t just a bureaucratic checkbox; it was a fundamental shift toward evidence-based, trauma-informed justice.
But legislative change was only the beginning. The harder work lay ahead: implementing these new requirements and training a generation of professionals to work differently with child victims.
From Law to Practice: The First Barnahus
In 2015, CNPAC, in partnership with UNICEF and the Ministry of Justice, organised Moldova’s first training program for specialised child interviewers, bringing in international experts such as Nigel King from the UK and Bert Groen from the Netherlands. Among the first cohort was Diana Țeberneac, who would become one of Moldova’s most experienced child interviewers and a key figure in the Barnahus implementation.
The training marked a crucial transition from advocacy to service delivery. CNPAC wasn’t content to simply campaign for change – they wanted to demonstrate how child-friendly justice could work in practice.
In 2014, the first specialised interview equipment was purchased and installed within the social rehabilitation service managed by CNPAC. Since then, for more than ten years, hundreds of children from the central region of the country have been interviewed by trained professionals using this specialised setup, ensuring both legal reliability and emotional safety.
The culmination of these efforts came in 2019 when the Moldovan government approved the regulatory framework for Barnahus services. CNPAC obtained accreditation as a service provider and launched Barnahus North in Bălți, serving 12 administrative units in northern Moldova and covering 571 localities.
This wasn’t just another service launch – it was the first Barnahus implementation in the post-Soviet space, making Moldova a pioneer in child protection reform for the entire region.
Technology as an Enabler: The Davidhorn Solution
With legislative requirements for audio-video recording in place, CNPAC needed technology that could meet international standards while proving reliable in Moldova’s specific context. They selected Davidhorn’s Indico Software Recorder system, a choice that would prove instrumental to their success.
The technology implementation was refreshingly straightforward. “Our cooperation with Davidhorn is super smooth and we are very happy with it,” explains Diana Țeberneac. “From the moment the equipment was installed, we used it. We didn’t have any difficulties.”
“For us at Davidhorn, it has been an honour to contribute to such a groundbreaking child protection initiative in Moldova. Technology alone will not create change, but when combined with the dedication and vision of partners like CNPAC, it becomes a powerful enabler. Our cooperation throughout the project has been excellent – from the very first meetings to the installations of our systems in Chișinău and Bălți. Seeing how our recording solutions have helped ensure both reliable evidence and a more humane experience for children is deeply meaningful to us. This is exactly why we do what we do – to support professionals who are making a real difference in the lives of vulnerable children.” reflects Stig Knutsen, Chief Partner Officer at Davidhorn.
CNPAC installed two systems: one at Barnahus North in Bălți and another at their center in Chișinău. The fixed HD recording solutions provide court-ready evidence while maintaining the child-friendly environment essential to the Barnahus model.
The reliability of the technology has been crucial to building professional confidence in the new system. If technical issues do arise, they’re resolved quickly through Davidhorn’s partnership with local IT specialists.
Perhaps most importantly, the technology has proven its worth in the courtroom. Legal professionals who were initially sceptical of the Barnahus approach have become advocates after seeing the quality of evidence produced through recorded interviews.
Overcoming Resistance: The Power of Evidence
Not everyone embraced the Barnahus model immediately. State institutions showed initial reluctance to use the new facilities, preferring familiar processes despite their limitations.
“They were rather reluctant, or they were not very happy to come to the Barnahus,” Irina Sandu recalls. “We really faced this kind of resistance from the system, and it took us quite a lot to overcome this challenge.”
The sources of resistance were understandable: habit, comfort with existing processes, and insufficient understanding of the benefits. Some professionals genuinely didn’t see what was wrong with the old way of doing things.
CNPAC’s response was characteristically methodical. Instead of arguing or applying pressure, they focused on demonstrating results. They organised study visits, invited sceptical professionals to observe Barnahus interviews, and carefully documented outcomes.
The strategy worked. Professionals began to recognise that Barnahus interviews produced higher-quality evidence while reducing trauma for children. Some legal teams now travel from southern Moldova to the northern Barnahus specifically because they trust the quality of evidence produced there.
“We have some professionals who are ready to travel from South to North,” Daniela Sîmboteanu explains. “They are confident that interviewing in Barnahus will ensure good evidence for the case.”
Measuring Success: More Than Numbers
Today, CNPAC’s Barnahus operations handle over 400 interviews annually with just nine active interviewers – a testament to both the demand for services and the efficiency of the model. With the support of UNICEF, the organisation has trained 28 certified interviewers nationwide, creating a professional network capable of supporting expanded services.
But the most compelling evidence of success comes from the people the system serves. CNPAC conducted research to gather feedback from children and parents who had experienced Barnahus interviews. The results were overwhelmingly positive: families appreciated the less traumatic experience and the supportive environment that helped them navigate the legal system.
Children describe feeling safer and more comfortable. Parents report that the process felt “less dramatic” and more manageable. Legal professionals acknowledge that they get better evidence from interviews conducted in the Barnahus environment.
“They appreciated the assistance in the Barnahus that helped them to pass easily through this experience,” Daniela Sîmboteanu explains. “To be in contact with the legal system in a less traumatic way.”
A Model That Inspires: The Ripple Effect
The success of CNPAC’s Barnahus has created ripple effects throughout Moldova’s victim services landscape. Other organisations working with victims of violence have contacted Davidhorn directly, seeking similar recording technology for their facilities.
“We are very glad that other service providers were inspired by us,” Ms Sîmboteanu notes with satisfaction. Women’s shelters, UN Women projects, and other victim services have adopted similar technology, creating what amounts to a new standard for recording in Moldova’s victim services sector.
This organic spread of best practices demonstrates something crucial: when organisations implement genuinely effective solutions, other professionals notice and want to replicate them. The technology spillover effect has amplified CNPAC’s impact far beyond their direct services.
Sustainable Success: The Funding Model
Perhaps most impressively, CNPAC has achieved something many NGOs struggle with: sustainable government funding for their services. In 2019, the regulatory framework established Barnahus as a state-funded service, with CNPAC operating as an accredited service provider while the government covers operational costs.
“The reality is that the state is conscious that Barnahus is a state-funded service,” Daniela Sîmboteanu explains. “As NGO, we’re service providers, so they procure the services from our organisation, but they cover the cost.”
This represents a fundamental shift in how Moldova approaches child protection – from viewing it as charity work to recognising it as an essential government service. CNPAC still needs to advocate annually for budget increases, but the principle of state responsibility has been established.
The sustainable funding model has allowed CNPAC to focus on service quality and expansion rather than constant fundraising. It also signals to other countries that Barnahus services can be integrated into national budgets rather than remaining dependent on international donors.
Looking Forward: Technology and Expansion
As CNPAC plans for future expansion – a second Barnahus is planned for southern Moldova with UNICEF support – they’re also thinking about technological evolution. The current CD/DVD recording format is becoming obsolete as fewer devices can read these formats.
“Less and less devices accept CDs,” Diana Țeberneac observes. “We anticipate this as a risk, and we think that maybe these hearings could be registered in a more modern and sustainable way.”
Davidhorn’s evolution toward cloud-based storage and digital sharing capabilities aligns perfectly with these needs. As the Barnahus network expands, the ability to share evidence securely and efficiently will become increasingly important.
The technology needs reflect a broader trend: what started as a solution to meet legislative requirements has become a platform for continuous improvement in how Moldova protects children.
Lessons for the World: A Replicable Model
CNPAC’s 27-year journey from emergency response to systemic transformation offers valuable lessons for child protection advocates worldwide, particularly in regions with similar legal and cultural challenges.
The first lesson is patience combined with persistence. Systemic change takes time, but consistent effort guided by clear vision can achieve remarkable results. CNPAC didn’t try to change everything at once; they built credibility through service delivery, then used that credibility to advocate for legislative change, then demonstrated how the new laws could work in practice.
The second lesson is the power of evidence-based advocacy. Rather than simply arguing that the old system was wrong, CNPAC demonstrated that their approach produced better outcomes for everyone involved – children, families, and legal professionals alike.
The third lesson is the importance of reliable technology partnerships. CNPAC’s success with Davidhorn’s recording systems wasn’t just about having good equipment; it was about having a technology partner that understood their mission and provided reliable support when needed.
International Recognition: Moldova as a Pioneer
CNPAC’s achievements have gained international recognition through their founding membership in the Barnahus Network, which connects similar initiatives across Europe. Their experience is particularly valuable because Moldova represents the first successful Barnahus implementation in a post-Soviet context.
“From the methodological point of view, it’s the European BARNAHUS network,” Daniela Sîmboteanu explains when asked about international support. This international recognition brings both validation and responsibility. Other countries in similar situations look to Moldova’s experience for guidance on how to implement child-friendly justice reforms in challenging institutional environments.
The Human Impact: Why This Matters
Behind every statistic and policy change are individual children whose lives have been fundamentally improved by CNPAC’s work. Diana Țeberneac, one of the first certified interviewers, has personally conducted hundreds of interviews using the Barnahus model and Davidhorn technology.
The difference in children’s experiences is profound. Instead of facing a room full of intimidating officials, children now interact with a single, specially trained professional in a comfortable, child-friendly environment. The recording technology ensures their testimony is captured accurately without requiring repeated questioning.
For families navigating the justice system, the Barnahus approach transforms what could be a traumatic ordeal into a manageable process where their children’s well-being is the primary concern.
For legal professionals, the higher quality of evidence obtained through proper interviews leads to better case outcomes and more successful prosecutions of crimes against children.
A Story of Hope and Determination
The story of CNPAC and Moldova’s Barnahus implementation is ultimately a story about what’s possible when vision meets determination and reliable partnerships. It demonstrates that even small organisations in resource-constrained environments can achieve transformational change when they combine a clear mission, strategic thinking, and the right technology partners.
Over nearly three decades, CNPAC has played a leading role in shaping Moldova’s child protection system – from developing policies and intersectoral cooperation mechanisms to promoting national prevention programs that have changed both professional practices and public attitudes toward child abuse.
But beyond organisational success, CNPAC’s story represents something more significant: proof that with persistence, partnership, and proper technology support, it’s possible to build justice systems that truly serve their most vulnerable citizens.
In a world where child protection often feels like a challenge, Moldova’s experience offers something precious: a working model that others can adapt and implement, creating a future where every child victim of violence has access to justice without re-traumatisation.
The revolution in Moldova’s child protection system is far from complete – expansion to other regions continues, new technologies are being explored, and more professionals are being trained. But the foundation has been laid, the model has been proven, and the children of Moldova are safer because of it.
