A new Children’s Commissioner for Wales has been appointed.

Rocio Cifuentes will take up the role in April, replacing the departing Sally Holland, who has served in the role since 2015.

Ms Cifuentes was chosen by First Minister Mark Drakeford, after she was recommended by a cross-party panel of Senedd Members.

What is the Children’s Commissioner for Wales?

The commissioner’s role is to promote and protect the rights of children and to scrutinise decisions made by the Welsh Government regarding children and young people.

The First Minister said the role is “an extremely important one” and added: “The pandemic has caused huge disruption to the lives of children.

“This role will help to shape the future for a generation of children, whose lives have been shaped by coronavirus. That’s why it’s so important to continue to have a strong voice to speak up for them and to inform our decision making.”

He added: “Now, more than ever, the decisions we take as a Welsh Government must have the voice of children and young people at its very core and I’m proud that Rocio Cifuentes as our new Commissioner, will carry out this very important role.”

Who is Rocio Cifuentes?

Ms Cifuentes has worked as the Chief Executive of the Ethnic Minorities and Youth Support Team (EYST) since it was founded in 2005.

EYST supports Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities across Wales.

Born in Chile, Ms Cifuentes moved to Wales as a one-year-old, with her parents political refugees.

She attended Cambridge University, studying Social and Political Science, before doing a Masters in Social Research at Swansea University.

The incoming commissioner has also previously worked for the Council of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Organisations, Swansea Young Single Homelessness Project, Gower College and Swansea University.

She described her new job as an “immense privilege and honour” and said the role “will be more important now than it ever has been, delivering for the generation of children that have lived through coronavirus”.

Ms Cifuentes continued: “To all the children and young people of Wales, I make the commitment today to ensure your voice, your views and your future is at the heart of everything we do.”

Wales’ Social Justice Minister Jane Hutt, who chaired the cross-party panel that selected Ms Cifuentes, said: “It is imperative our next Children’s Commissioner has the knowledge, understanding and the lived experience to ensure all views and values shape the brighter future our children so desperately need.

“[Ms Cifuentes] brings a wealth of expertise and understanding to the role and I look forward to working closely with her in the coming years.”

Why is Sally Holland departing?

The role of Children’s Commissioner for Wales is a seven-year tenure, with incumbents unable to serve for more than their seven-year term.

Thanking Ms Holland for her service, Mr Drakeford said: “Sally has been a strong advocate for the children and young people in Wales – from embedding children’s rights in key pieces of legislation, to providing an insight into children’s experiences of the pandemic via the large-scale, internationally renowned ‘Coronavirus and me’ surveys.

“Sally Holland has made an impressive and long-lasting contribution to a generation of children in Wales.”