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The mass migration underway around the world puts children in harm’s way

We’ve been talking about a specific global controversy for what seems like ages — on TV, the radio, the web, social media and around the water cooler, but it’s an age-old problem. And, putting up barriers won’t solve the systemic issue causing people to risk their lives to migrate from their homeland through unconventional, dangerous channels.

What’s missing from much of the reports is a conversation about the number of vulnerable children caught up in the shuffle — children escaping poverty, crime and violence in search of more opportunities. The scariest part? They’re alone.

I have three wishes for my son — I want him to be healthy, safe and happy.

I know I’m not alone. But, not all children have these needs met. And, what happens to those whose rights aren’t respected? How are we keeping them safe?

Eleven-year-old Kamal* walked barefoot across scorched scrubland for a week from his home in Somalia to Kenya. With their crops and livestock devastated by drought, Kamal’s family had no choice but to leave and try their luck in a new country.

Kamal was lucky. Unlike many children who died along the way, he made it across the Kenyan border, and is now living in Dolow, near Ethiopia.

But there, too, the situation is desperate.

* Not his real name. Name has been changed to protect his privacy.

Since 2004, ChildFund Deutschland (Germany) has been working on behalf of children and youth in Ukraine with two partners, Child Wellbeing Fund Ukraine and the East Europe Foundation. 

In 2014, it began providing humanitarian emergency response for internally displaced families and children (IDPs). Today, ChildFund is collaborating with more than half a dozen partner organizations in Ukraine.

A big part of [the sustainable development] agenda is protecting children to ensure they can realize their dreams. It’s a daunting task, so organizations are joining forces like never before. We understand we can’t achieve the 17 [SDGs] in isolation — we need one united voice.

by Lovisa Demirci, Barnfonden Sweden

The heat is burning in the afternoon in Ziro, Burkina Faso, and every seat in the shade is taken. An excited audience is waiting, while two young men test the microphones. It´s time for the weekly meeting about sexual and reproductive rights issues. The topic for the day: How to prevent HIV/AIDS.

Read the blog.

The ChildFund Alliance EU Office co-organized the debate: “Mobilising partnerships and investment to end violence against children: A multistakeholder approach in fragile and conflict-affected contexts” on 8 June 2017, during the European Development Days in Brussels. Our partners in organizing the event were World Vision, Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, World Health Organization (WHO), Unicef and the European External Action Service.

Misozi Sambo, a bright young woman from Zambia, is following her dream of becoming a teacher thanks to the intervention of our CEO Michael Kiely and friends back in Ireland who will now support her education.

Youth matter.

That thought has stayed with me in the days since ChildFund International’s second annual Advocacy Day, March 24, when 27 ChildFund colleagues visited Capitol Hill in teams to speak with members of Congress and their staff about issues critical to the well-being of children and youth worldwide.

A billboard-sized sign along the road from Udaipur through the Aravalli Mountains shows two scenes — one is of a burly man with a bandana around his neck reaching out from behind a tree to grab a young girl’s shoulder. She looks away as if to run in the opposite direction. In the other scene, looming shadows of hands grasp for a girl clutching a stuffed bear. The headline in Hindi reads: “BT cotton has destroyed the childhood of children.” Below is the familiar logo of ChildFund India, which is campaigning against child labor in this region.