You can do anything you want if you believe in yourself
Since the onset of the refugee and migrant crisis, UNICEF has been working to ensure the safety and overall well-being of refugee and migrant children
- Srpski
- English
Loznica/Belgrade, Serbia, March 2021 – It’s noon in the shelter for unaccompanied or separated refugee and migrant girls run by the local non-governmental organization, BorderFree in Loznica in western Serbia, and the girls have just finished their daily chores.
Seventeen-year-old Aya* from the Democratic Republic of Congo is looking out of the window, daydreaming about spending more time outdoors and playing football as the weather has just started getting warmer.
For a year now, after arriving in Serbia on her own, Aya has been living in the shelter supported by the local Centre for Social Work together with the other vulnerable unaccompanied refugee and migrant children in Serbia.
In the last two years, UNICEF has been receiving reports from its partners in the field about girls on the move who are unaccompanied or separated from their loved ones, travelling along migration routes that are very dangerous for adolescent girls.
Whether travelling to find new opportunities for work or education, or to join their families or partners, or to flee violence, including child marriage, unaccompanied or separated girls face increased and specific risks, including those related to gender-based violence before, during and after migration.
Yet they often remain ‘invisible’, hidden away within other families or groups, or they are self-identifying as adults. Because they are not always identified, they may be poorly represented in official statistics which further leads to difficulties accessing services.
Since the onset of the refugee and migrant crisis, UNICEF has been working to ensure the safety and overall well-being of refugee and migrant children, to improve the identification of vulnerable groups and to increase awareness of the issue of unaccompanied and separated children, especially girls.
As a part of the regional program Action against Gender Based Violence towards Refugees and Migrants in Europe (Phase III), implemented with the generous contribution from the Government of the United States, UNICEF, in cooperation with partner organizations, has conducted an analysis Making the Invisible Visible.
The analysis looks into experiences and challenges faced by girls on their journeys through Europe, especially those who travel unaccompanied or separated from their parents.
UNICEF, with support of its partner Info Park, has used this analysis to work with other professionals and frontline workers on sensitizing and enhancing their capacity on issues related to the specific situation of unaccompanied and separated girls, especially in the context of gender-based violence.
Aya has travelled a long way from her hometown in the Democratic Republic of Congo to Serbia. Her dream is to become a nurse.
“I want to be able to help others,” she says.
“Unaccompanied or separated girls are vulnerable because of the risks of gender-based violence that they could be exposed to on migrant routes. These girls are at risk of violence, abuse, maltreatment and sexual exploration and often are victims of human trafficking,” says Natasa Pavicevic, coordinator of social workers at The Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs.
Working with the professionals engaged by this ministry has been crucial, as the professionals from the system of social welfare are a key factor in the provision of protection for unaccompanied girls.
The social workers Pavicevic coordinates have the tough task of identifying separated or unaccompanied girls like Aya.
“They usually travel with a group of people they call family, even though that’s not their family but a group of people they got attached to during their travel. Girls are often hesitant to ask for help because they are afraid of migrant smugglers and this is how they stay away from official support networks,” says Pavicevic.
Sara Ristic, from the Info Park NGO, has worked closely with UNICEF and its regional partners to develop a tool that can be used to help improve the identification of unaccompanied or separated girls.
“The tool consists of descriptions of different situations, physical appearance, behaviour and so on, that help us identify unaccompanied or separated girls,” says Ristic.
Ristic explains that once the tool was put to use, the number of girls identified as unaccompanied or separated started rising.
“It turned out we were gender-blind – we thought of unaccompanied or separated children as mostly boys, as boys are easy to spot - they are usually within a large group of men and it’s easy to notice they are underage,” says Ristic.
Social workers now use this tool to identify unaccompanied or separated girls.
“The tool is largely helpful for the frontline workers on the ground who are the ministry’s right hand. It helps them initiate the process of protecting the girls within the government protection system,” says Pavicevic.
Once the girls are identified, they get support from a guardian, a trained female professional, with whom the girls build a relationship of trust and who takes care of different aspects of their safety.
While Aya is waiting to enrol to school with the help of her guardian, she is studying English and Serbian and attending different workshops.
“I can’t cook, but I hope I can learn while I’m here. I would like to prepare the African fufu dish for the girls who live with me,” says Aya.
Apart from the fact that migration routes are notoriously dangerous for adolescent girls, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it even harder for Aya and other girls to cope with the challenges.
But Aya says the measures in place in the shelter make her feel safe during the pandemic.
“I wash my hands regularly and use hand sanitizers when I go out,” she says.
Aya spends her free time staying in touch with her family and friends online, but also enjoys relaxing with her friends in the shelter - she says the girls love experimenting with different hair styles.
One of Aya’s friends is Sakina*, a fifteen-year-old girl who is just about to start her final year of primary school.
“I love knitting, listening to French music and Beyoncé,” says Sakina.
Sakina also loves drawing – her many interests make it hard for her to decide what she wants to become when she grows up.
“Maybe I will become a singer or maybe even a lawyer, or maybe a stylist because I love drawing dresses,” Sakina says.
But both Sakina and Aya are sure about one thing – you need to believe in yourself if you want to achieve your goals.
“Today, girls can achieve even more than boys if they are self-confident and focused,” says Aya.
Sakina agrees.
“Girls need to believe in themselves and not listen to anyone who says they can’t do something,” says Sakina.
UNICEF works with refugee and migrant young women and girls to ensure their safety, protection, well-being and advance their rights. With the support network for Sakina and Aya, believing in themselves should become at least a bit easier
*The names of unaccompanied refugee and migrant girls have been changed for their protection
