New guidance document: children affected by migration

Date: 27th July 2016
Category: Refugee and asylum seeking children
Author: Kopin

This new resource is a set of recommended principles to guide actions concerning children on the move and other children affected by migration, prepared by a large number of experts from UN agencies, academics, donor agencies and civil society organisations.

About

The "Principles" are intended to influence policy makers and other stakeholders responsible for implementing measures that affect the rights and needs of these children. They take note of the recommendations set out in the Committee on the Rights of the Child's 2012 Day of General Discussion Report on "The Rights of All Children in the Context of International Migration".

These "Principles", by being coherent, clear and widely known, are intended to improve the quality of protection afforded to all Children on the Move and Other Children affected by Migration, and to enhance programming, accountability, advocacy and communication. Many of the "Principles" are binding obligations already widely ratified by States. Nevertheless, because they are without exception poorly and incompletely implemented, their re-statement in concise form provides a workable tool for action.

Amongst others, the following agencies participated in the drafting and/or are engaged in the advocacy work around these principles such as the dedicated meeting on these "Principles" at the Human Rights Council in June 2016: OHCHR, UNICEF, IOM, Caritas Internationalis, World Organization for early Childhood Education (OMEP), Destination Unknown Campaign, International Detention Coalition, International Social Service, NGO Committee on Migration, International Catholic Migration Committee (ICMC), PICUM, Save the Children, Terre des Hommes, Geomoun, Kopin.