The number of children on the move, including refugee and displaced children, is increasing. This puts massive pressure on governments, communities, and the humanitarian agencies that protect them. An estimated 89.3 million people had been forcibly displaced from their homes by the end of 2021, which increased to a staggering 100 million by mid-2022. In at least 17 countries, refugees or internally displaced people account for at least five percent of the population.
Publications
17 March 2023
This report emphasizes the importance of addressing children's risks in the digital environment. While there are many benefits to digital connectivity and access to information, it also exposes children to various forms of exploitation and violence.
To address these challenges, the report strongly recommends immediate action to create a safer digital environment for children. Measures suggested strengthened legislation and regulation to safeguard children online, promoting digital literacy and skills development for children and caregivers, and fostering collaboration between governments, civil society, and the private sector to address online violence against children.
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14 March 2023
It is estimated that one in three Internet users worldwide is under 18 years of age. While the digital environment offers new opportunities for the realization of children’s rights, it also poses risks of the violation or abuse of those rights. The online risks to children can entail different forms of violence and harm. The lack of comprehensive data on violence against children in that environment remains a challenge.
10 October 2022
The paper recalls that children – who bear the least responsibility for the climate crisis - are among those hit hardest by its impacts, with around 1 billion of them exposed to its risks. The advocacy brief demonstrates that climate crisis is a ‘threat multiplier’ for violence against children, exacerbating every challenge – from poverty to displacement and loss of education – that enables such violence to thrive. While no child is immune to the combined impact of the climate crisis and violence, that impact falls most heavily on the children who are already the most disadvantaged.
06 July 2022
This paper gives an overview of the economic case for investing in the prevention of violence against children. It is intended to alert policymakers to the substantial economic and social costs of violence against children and the potential dividend that would accrue from investment in violence prevention. The paper outlines where governments can strengthen and improve engagement in violence prevention in light of post-COVID-19 recovery planning and beyond.
08 March 2021
This report provides an overview of the different actions taken forward by children mostly in times of COVID-19, but not limited to it. It looks at children’s diverse roles when helping to prevent, address, and report violence (including supporting their peers); it helps to understand how children are contributing and being part of the solutions when thinking about building back better, and how children are helping accelerate the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
20 November 2020
More than 1 billion children – half of all children in the world – are exposed to violence every year. It is clear that violence has a severe impact on the mental health of children. Exposure to violence is often traumatic, and it can evoke toxic responses to stress that cause both immediate and long-term physiological and psychological damage. The consequences of violence include depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, borderline personality disorder, anxiety, substance use disorders, sleep and eating disorders, and suicide.
25 June 2020
Tens of thousands of foreign, Iraqi, and Syrian children are being held in detention on suspected ISIS association or terror-related offenses, or in camps. These children are exposed to violence, due process violations, and family separation. Securing solutions for these children must be pursued in advance or in parallel with efforts to facilitate repatriation. The UN standpoint is that identified children should be repatriated and children born to nationals be granted citizenship.
25 June 2020
The current discourse on violent extremism focuses largely on young adults, thereby overlooking key drivers, influences, and causal pathways that are specific to children. These include children’s biological tendency towards risk-taking and heightened vulnerability to polarized message content. It is also clear that when children become associated with violent extremist groups, this can reflect an age-specific psychological response to their surroundings or circumstances.
12 June 2020
This report draws on 10 case studies to examine child participation experiences related to different forms of violence, spanning initiatives driven by governments, international organizations, and civil society. It zooms in on children’s roles, the methods used, the balance between offline and online, and how each initiative has achieved its impact. It identifies common elements that make child participation effective for violence prevention, reporting, and awareness, offering concrete recommendations for children’s rights-based organizations.