{"id":3982,"date":"2023-09-07T14:50:52","date_gmt":"2023-09-07T14:50:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.refugepoint.org\/?p=3982"},"modified":"2023-12-26T22:44:20","modified_gmt":"2023-12-26T22:44:20","slug":"refugepoints-commitment-to-child-protection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.refugepoint.org\/refugepoints-commitment-to-child-protection\/","title":{"rendered":"RefugePoint’s Commitment to Child Protection"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcoming Little Amal to Boston<\/b><\/h4>\n

From September 7-9, Boston, the home of RefugePoint\u2019s headquarters, will be welcoming a very special guest named Little Amal. Little Amal, whose name means \u201chope\u201d in Arabic, is a 12-foot puppet that symbolizes a 10-year-old Syrian refugee girl in search of her mother. Little Amal has traveled to more than a dozen countries and has met more than one million people to raise awareness about the plight of refugee children. <\/span>Boston is the first stop on Little Amal\u2019s 6,000-mile journey across the United States<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How does Little Amal\u2019s visit relate to RefugePoint?<\/b><\/h4>\n

A commitment to child protection underpins all that we do at RefugePoint. In this<\/span> blog post<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>we go into detail about how our Child Protection Experts throughout Africa and the Middle East support refugee children like Little Amal who have been separated from their families.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to the work our Child Protection Experts do, our child protection staff at RefugePoint\u2019s Urban Refugee Protection Program (URPP) in Nairobi, Kenya work to ensure that <\/span>refugee children who are at-risk, as well as unaccompanied and separated children, are safe from abuse, violence, exploitation, and neglect, and have access to lasting solutions that are in their best interest.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How does RefugePoint support refugee children through our Urban Refugee Protection Program (URPP) in Nairobi, Kenya?\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n

Many urban refugee children have lost their traditional support systems (extended family, neighbors, teachers), leaving them especially susceptible to violence, abuse and neglect, as well as various forms of gender-based violence (GBV) such as sexual abuse, child marriage, female genital mutilation, and survival sex, leading to continued trauma. Their schooling is also frequently interrupted, often put on hold for years.<\/span><\/p>\n

For children living with their parents or caretakers, we focus on supporting the family with food, rent, medical support, counseling, and livelihood assistance as the frontline of protection. We also support school enrollment and focus on education as an important intervention for combating poverty and providing children with immediate protection and opportunities to integrate in their new communities.<\/span><\/p>\n

For children who are unaccompanied \u2013 either separated from their parents or orphaned \u2013 we conduct Best Interest Determinations (BIDs) to assess their situation and determine the best way forward.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

All children have the right to a family and families have the right to care for their children. RefugePoint is committed in identifying unaccompanied refugee children and adults who have been separated from their families, and supporting them to resettle safely or reunite with family. Direct casework is done by RefugePoint staff members to increase access to resettlement and family reunification for refugees. This includes conducting case management, completing best interest procedures, and providing referrals to partners for legal services or to address other direct services<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How many refugee children are living in Nairobi and other urban areas in Kenya?\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n

As of June 30, 2023, Kenya\u2019s urban areas host roughly 95,522 refugees and asylum seekers including 88,006 in Nairobi, 2,099 in Nakuru, and 5,417 in Mombasa, which represents about 15% of the total refugee population in Kenya. Around 68% of the overall refugee population in Kenya are children. There are 30,935 refugee children in Kenya\u2019s urban areas. Among them, there are over 3,000 unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) living in urban areas like Nairobi, as well as other children in need of protection.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Baraka\u2019s Story\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n

In 2022, RefugePoint helped Baraka,* a 14-year-old separated child who was living in Nairobi, to resettle to a safe, new country. Baraka experienced a tremendous amount of hardship in his short life. When our staff first met Baraka in March 2016, he was in a dire situation\u2014he required urgent medical care, clothing, counseling, and a safe place to live. Baraka\u2019s recovery journey was incredible. Just before Baraka departed for resettlement, he was able to smile, chat, and create artwork \u2013 seemingly simple acts that he could not do just months before.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI love riding my bicycle. I also love drawing, particularly animals like elephants because they are big. My teacher taught me how to draw; that is why I enjoy drawing. Among the pictures I have drawn are a horse and my friend Ben* who lives here with me,\u201d Baraka shared with us.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After a best interest determination (BID) was conducted to assess Baraka\u2019s situation, UNHCR determined that the best long-term solution for Baraka was resettlement. Many RefugePoint team members and partner organizations collaborated to support Baraka in his recovery and reaching safety and stability through resettlement. Children like Baraka motivate our team to do the work that we do!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

RefugePoint\u2019s Impact\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n

RefugePoint\u2019s Child Protection team in Nairobi has assisted over 1,000 children to access education as a protection measure, and supported nearly 400 children to access safe living environments.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Follow along as we walk with Little Amal in Boston<\/b><\/h4>\n

For real-time updates, be sure to <\/span>follow us on Instagram<\/span><\/a> as we walk with Little Amal throughout her Boston tour.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For the full Little Amal Boston schedule, <\/span>click here<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Want to learn more about our work supporting unaccompanied and separated children? Check out these resources:<\/b><\/h4>\n

1) Watch this<\/span> 60 Minutes<\/span><\/a> piece about the resettlement to the US of a group of unaccompanied children known as the Sudanese Lost Boys. A Hollywood film was later made about them called <\/span>The Good Lie<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

2) Watch this 20-<\/span>second reel<\/span><\/a> of a Congolese mother whom RefugePoint helped to reunite with her children and husband.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

3) Watch this <\/span>30-second reel for International Day of the Girl Child<\/span><\/a> about an unaccompanied Rwandan refugee minor who came to the US and built her life here and is now on RefugePoint’s board.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

4) Read this <\/span>op ed about reuniting unaccompanied children with their parents<\/span><\/a> which highlights RefugePoint’s work to help a Yazidi child reunite with his mother in Canada and the global need to reunite children with parents.<\/span><\/p>\n

5) Read this<\/span> op ed about<\/span><\/a> the importance of reuniting Ukrainian children with their parents based on RefugePoint’s global work to support family reunion efforts.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcoming Little Amal to Boston From September 7-9, Boston, the home of RefugePoint\u2019s headquarters, will be welcoming a very special guest named Little Amal. Little Amal, whose name means \u201chope\u201d in Arabic, is a 12-foot puppet that symbolizes a 10-year-old Syrian refugee girl in search of her mother. Little Amal has traveled to more than […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":3977,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"acf":{"extra_image":false,"disable_featured_image":false,"hide_post_date":false,"article_style":"default"},"yoast_head":"\nRefugePoint's Commitment to Child Protection | RefugePoint<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Explore RefugePoint's unwavering commitment to safeguarding refugee children. 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