The refugee and migrant crisis
One quarter of the refugees and migrants who have arrived in Europe are children. UNICEF responds to all uprooted children's needs at every stage of their journey, urging governments to protect their rights.
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Refugee and migrant response
Despite the de-facto closure of the Balkan route in early March 2016, a constant stream of refugees and migrants arrives in Serbia, mainly from North Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro Bulgaria, and Bosnia and Herzegovina – with strong support from cross-border smuggling and trafficking networks.
Since 2015, more than 1.5 million refugees and migrants have passed through Serbia, of which between a third and a quarter were children.
During 2020, the number of refugees and migrants present in Serbia at any given time was around 7,000 and accommodated in reception, transit and asylum centres around 6,000.
Child protection main issues
When entering the country, women and children on the move are physically exhausted, psychologically traumatized, and many need medical and protection assistance.
Refugee and migrant children, and women, are accommodated in collective centres that provide basic needs; however, they have limited access to safe places to rest and thrive, receiving only irregular specialized and community-based psychosocial support.
Referral to specialized services, including for sexual violence, is limited, and children face several linguistic, cultural and social barriers to access them. The needs of adolescent girls and boys have also largely been unmet up to now.
Despite various actors' continuous efforts, there are still concerns about unaccompanied children, as they are at particularly high risk of violence, abuse, and other problems. In these cases, it is important to have adequate capacity to adequately identify, assess needs, determine their best interests, and provide additional support during the case management process.
Most children attend primary school; however, a smaller number attend secondary or higher education; girls figures drop further when it comes to girls.
Finally, the nutrition of children, in particular infants, is still an area of concern.
Core strategic priorities
Child protection
UNICEF's response focuses on the overall well-being of all refugee and migrant children:
- Identifying the most vulnerable and at-risk
- Referring them to social workers and further specialized care
- Enhancing competencies of all service providers for quality and timely care
- Providing meaningful services to UASC
UNICEF pays special attention to sensitizing service providers to the different vulnerabilities and risks faced by different groups of children on the move - especially girls travelling alone or separated from their parents. UNICEF also supports child protection coordination through the Working Group's co-chairing on Child Protection, in close cooperation with the Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veterans' Affairs and Social Affairs of the Republic of Serbia.
Gender-based violence
UNICEF helps school administrations, local institutions, and partners enrol refugee and migrant children in Serbia and promote regular school attendance and non-formal education activities. Efforts are being made to assess learning outcomes, involve parents, and ensure enrollment and retention in secondary education, especially for unaccompanied or separated children and girls.
UNICEF activities also aim to strengthen children's language and digital competencies, which are important for further education and development and everyday life. Simultaneously, we are working on strengthening the system of additional, flexible and individualized support for learning to children included in Serbia's formal education system and motivating children to get involved in formal primary and secondary education.
Education
UNICEF supports school administrations, local institutions and partners to promote regular attendance of refugee and migrant children in Serbian schools and promotes non-formal education activities.
UNICEF activities also aim to strengthen children's language and digital competencies, which are important for further education and development and everyday life. Simultaneously, we are working on strengthening the system of additional, flexible and individualized support for learning to children included in Serbia's formal education system and motivating children to get involved in formal primary and secondary education.
Health and nutrition
UNICEF's response supports nutrition and health services to mothers and babies through Mother and Baby Corners. It plays a pivotal role in providing technical support on nutrition and early childhood development to other institutions and actors, including periodic training and creating appropriate information materials in the refugee/migrant population's languages.
UNICEF also supports coordination in mental health protection of refugees and migrants and leads efforts to prevent substance abuse in children and young people from this population.
Empowerment and participation of young people
UNICEF also aims to ensure adolescents and young people's development, wherever they are, to realize their potential, have access to information and services, and be active in the community. Young migrants and refugees participate in training and craft programs to be more empowered and independent, acquire and improve skills that contribute to breaking stereotypes, constructive interaction, and innovative ideas in the environment.
We are committed to the inclusion and well-being of young people, programs for healthy lifestyles, and young people's well-being, including mental health, resilience in crises, and independence. Through an initiative to raise awareness and care for the health of young refugees and migrants struggling to access health care, we have provided information materials in their language and health literacy packages on a range of key health issues, including topics related to youth empowerment and mental health.
UNICEF's integrated approach
UNICEF focuses on applying an integrated approach:
- Mainstreaming GBV into all programmatic activities.
- Promoting joint and integrated capacity development initiatives.
- Advocating that all child rights are comprehensively respected and fulfilled in line with the Convention of the Child's Rights (CRC).
UNICEF provides advocacy, technical assistance, and protection guidance to various stakeholders (frontline NGOs and institutions).
UNICEF plays a paramount role in coordinating the Child Protection Working Group, supporting the GBV Working Group, and leveraging and advocating with other agencies to allocate resources and implement initiatives in protection.
UNICEF Serbia is an essential technical actor in the education, health and nutrition sectors, disseminating guidance and acting as a technical resource and knowledge management hub to partners and institutions.
Partnerships and approaches
UNICEF actively participate in and promote partnerships with government institutions, United Nations agencies, including UNHCR, UNFPA, IOM and WHO, civil society actors, and the private sector.
UNICEF continues to have strategic emergency partnerships to ensure essential services are available for the hard-to-reach and most vulnerable groups, including:
Women Centre: Established within a wider Community Centre for refugees and migrants, the centre offers recreational and cultural activities, vocational training and GBV specialized services, including material assistance and psychosocial support. The centre includes a Child-Friendly Space and a Mother and Baby Corner.
Immediate emergency support to women and children on the move: Women, girls and children on the move receive lifesaving and real-time information about child protection and GBV services, as well as comprehensive information about accessing assistance in Serbia.
UASC identification and assistance: Gender-sensitive and age-appropriate cultural mediation services are offered to children on the move, and UASC accommodated in reception and asylum centres. Referral to specialized services and documentation of vulnerable cases is also ensured.
Health and nutrition for babies and their caregivers: Mothers and young children access comprehensive Mother and Baby Corner related activities to ensure their healthy and safe development and that mothers have access to counselling and advice. A Mother and Baby Corner is also a functional entry point for GBV disclosure and child protection mainstreaming.
System strengthening
UNICEF designs its emergency interventions to ultimately strengthen national and local protection systems by working together with governments, local authorities and institutions at central and municipal levels.
We support key institutional actors to develop and disseminate policies, elaborate referral pathways and standard operating procedures, promote capacity development initiatives, and promote sustainable capacity development initiatives, including cooperation with the University of Belgrade.
Finally, UNICEF further supports national institutions' and state authorities' accountability for coordinating and responding to humanitarian needs efficiently and timely.
