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Description
The 2018 EU report shows that 31% of trafficked children in the EU came from Romania, which places Romania in the first place as a country of origin for the highest number of victims of child trafficking. The causes of this situation are multiple: lack of correct monitoring of the phenomenon, at county level there is no monitoring report; the deficient application of the norms regarding the assistance of the victims of child trafficking and the non-use of the existing expertise of the civil society regarding trafficked children; at the local level there are no active NGOs watchdog and advocacy actions; lack of public policies on child trafficking (ANPDC does not have an action plan on child trafficking despite European recommendations). The project responds to these needs by developing a research report on dimension and state’s intervention in the prevention and combating of the phenomenon counties, building capacity of 10 local NGOs from these counties in monitoring the phenomenon and developing advocacy actions at local / county level, building capacity of 80 DGASPC representatives in support services necessary for victims, raising the public awareness through media campaign on the real dimension of child trafficking and the level of intervention of the state in prevention and combating; cascading advocacy actions from county to European level to improve public policies and state intervention in this field, informing 600 children from the protection system, as international reports show that they are the most vulnerable to trafficking, legal advice for 50 victims and free legal assistance in order to facilitate their access to justice. The partner has experience in preventing child trafficking.
A National Action Plan on child trafficking victims will be developed.
Summary of project results
Romania ranks first in the EU as a country of origin for the highest number of victims of child trafficking. Among the causes of this situation are the following: lack systematic monitoring of the phenomenon; deficient application of the norms regarding the assistance of the victims of child trafficking; insufficient NGOs acting as watchdog and advocacy, especially at local level; lack of public policies on child trafficking (ANPDC does not have an action plan on child trafficking despite European recommendations).
The project responds to these needs by elaborating a report on the dimension and state’s intervention in the prevention and combating of the phenomenon, building capacity of NGOs to monitor the phenomenon and develop advocacy actions at local / county level, building capacity of DGASPC representatives in support services necessary for victims, raising the public awareness on the real dimension of child trafficking and the level of intervention of the state in prevention and combating; advocacy to improve public policies and state intervention in this field, informing children from the protection system (as international reports show that they are the most vulnerable to trafficking).
Within the project there were trained 24 representatives of 12 NGOs and 88 representatives of the DGASPCs from 14 counties and Bucharest. 670 children in the protection system participated to the awareness campaign; 170 children from the protection system participated to contest of messages regarding the trafficking of minors and had their drawings were presented in an exhibition organized within the Romanian Parliament on the occasion of the debate and voting in the Parliament of the legislative proposals to amend the Code of Criminal Procedure regarding the rights of child victims in the justice system, which it was adopted. 91 child victims of trafficking and other violent acts benefited from legal counseling in which they were informed about their procedural rights as victims in criminal proceedings and 5 victims of child trafficking benefited from legal assistance in criminal and civil proceedings. A research report was published online to support the advocacy initiatives for improvement of support services for victims of child trafficking.