National Activities

Image: ©Tdh

National Activities

Part of the funding provided to support the work of the Initiative for Children in Migration was allocated to directly support some national initiatives. These initiatives did not only bring important changes in the national context, but also contributed to the wider European advocacy and to other initiatives in countries with similar problems.

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A call was opened in 2019 and Initiatives were evaluated according to the following criteria:

  • Scope and reach (how many/different groups of children in migration would be impacted by the change)

  • Opportunities or threats

  • Sustainability (links to previous, ongoing, or other planned activities)

  • Collaboration (involving partners and other stakeholders on national and local level)

  • Possible relevance for the rest of the EU (e.g. if the change in the country in question might lead to positive change in other EU countries, or limit the spread of negative changes across the EU)

    • Image: ©Dani Oshi

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Five advocacy initiatives were selected:

  1. The project of the Association of Psychosocial Centres for Refugees and Victims of Torture (BAfF e.V.) (Germany) from April 2019 to November 2019: this project focused on improving access to psychosocial counselling and psychological treatment for minor asylum-seekers in the context of the so-called Anker-centres. These are housing situations, also called “transfer centres”, where freedom of movement is limited, and they are not child-friendly nor do they respect their needs. Based on this research, BAfF interviewed specialists working in these Anker-centres. This way, risk- and resilience factors for the mental health status of children and adolescents were identified. It led to a working paper on the mental health needs of refugee minors living in mass accommodation facilities.

  2. The Child friendly justice in action project by Defence for Children International (Belgium) from October 2018 to September 2020. This project advocated for the improvement and adaptation of the administrative justice system dealing with migrant children and the competences of professionals working in that field, starting from research including the voice of the children. This research highlighted 10 key findings, including the lack of information and participation of children in migration-related procedures in the EU. In this regard, guidelines were established for action to be taken at EU level.

  3. The Conference “Child Protection & EU Funding for migrant populations in Greece: A reality check and the way forward” by Terre des Hommes Greece, on  May 16, 2019 brought together child protection and migration experts to discuss deficiencies of the Greek reception, asylum and child protection systems that were revealed during the so-called refugee crisis of 2005. Based on these discussions, recommendations were drawn up. 

  4. The “Safe, not detained” initiative, by Terre des Hommes Romania, between March and June 2019. The initiative aimed to limit the detention of accompanied and unaccompanied migrant children in Romania (either failed asylum seekers or arriving at the borders) by promoting accessible and safe alternatives to the detention of migrant children already available in national legislation. The initiative consisted of both the development of communication materials to create awareness, based on participatory sessions with migrant children, and a round table discussion with national authorities to find safe, alternative solutions.The final report is available here.

  5. The advocacy initiative to reform the immigration and nationality systems by Coram Children’s Legal Centre (CCLC) (UK), from February to May 2019. This initiative focused on procedural rights and durable solutions for migrant children from outside of the EU, including following Brexit. The project helped them to make significant progress with their calls for lower fees, a simpler immigration system and a greater provision of legal support through lobbying on the Immigration Bill, by engaging with parliamentarians and civil servants and ensuring that young people’s voices were included in their work.

Image: ©Tdh