International Conference on Children on the Move
BARCELONA, SPAIN, 5-7 OCTOBER 2010
Millions of children are on the move, both within and between countries, with or without their parents. Children have become an important part of large-scale population movements currently involving millions of people and are likely to be increasingly affected in the next decades as a result of globalisation, socio-economic shifts and climate change. Yet, in debates on both child protection and migration, children who move are largely invisible. As a result, policy responses to support these vulnerable children are fragmented and inconsistent.
The Global Movement for Children, with support from the Catalan Government, is convening an international conference as a first step in the process of re-examining policy and programmatic responses to the protection and support of children on the move.
Leaving Home Report
In preparation of the International Conference on Protecting and Supporting Children on the Move, the Global Movement for Children is launching the “Leaving Home” report, produced by Save the Children on behalf of the GMC with the support of the Generalitat de Catalunya.
The report aims at giving voice to the great number of invisible children on the move and exposes the risks they face, the expectations they have and their reasons to leave in their own words while putting forward a number of recommendations based on their own requests and experiences.
The full report is available in English, Spanish and Catalan.
Download "Leaving Home Report English Version"
Download "Irse de Casa Spanish Version"
Download "Marxar de Casa Catalan Version"
Dates and location
Barcelona, 5-7 October, 2010
Palau de Pedralbes, Av. Diagonal, 686
- Click to see the location on the map of the conference venue
Conference programme
Please click here to see the detailed programme.
Main objectives of the Conference
- Promote a comprehensive understanding of the issue of children on the move, based on the best interests of the child
- Share knowledge and learning experiences from initiatives for the support and protection of children on the move
- Stimulate South-South and North-South collaboration and joint initiatives to improve the protection of children on the move
Participants
It is expected that the conference will bring together:- International agencies, including UN agencies (e.g. IOM, UNICEF, UNHCR, ILO IPEC etc)
- Regional intergovernmental organisations (EU, Africa Union etc)
- International NGOs (e.g. Plan, Save the Children, Terres des Hommes, World Vision, etc.)
- Donors (Oak Foundation, institutional donors eg. DFID etc)
- Regional and national NGOs (e.g. ENDA Tiers Monde)
- National Governments from North and South
- Key experts and academics (UN Special Rapporteurs and Special Representatives; Sussex University, other key experts)
- 8 children from various parts of the world will represent the views of their peers and attend a meeting the day before the conference and parts of the main event.
The Scientific Committee of the Conference
- Bill Bell, Chair, Save the Children
- Ann Whitehead, University of Sussex
- Araceli Lázaro, Child Rights Observatory, Generalitat de Catalunya.
- Daniela Reale, Save the Children
- Mirela Shuteriqi, Terre des Hommes
- Najat M’jid, UN Special Rapporteur on the sale of Children, child prostitution and child pornography.
- Rosa María Cuestas, Departament d’Acció Social i Ciutadania, Generalitat de Catalunya
- Silvia Casellas, Generalitat de Catalunya
- Susu Thatun, UNICEF
- Sven Coppens, Plan International
- Gonzalo de Castro, Intervida
More information on the programme, contents, speakers, etc. will be made available on this web in the course of the coming weeks.