International Girls in Migration: and what about their children?

Project : TDHIF in Europe 22 Sep 2011 | children on the move

Brussels, 21 September 2011: “A number of girls under 18 years old, migrating to the EU from Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, and Nigeria, arriving pregnant in Morocco, are undocumented. This means they are afraid to deliver in a hospital and not willing to register the birth of their child”. This is one among several issues regarding children on the move that Terre des Hommes highlighted during the public hearing “Girls in Migration: Collateral victims or actors of a world in motion?” taking place at the European Parliament in Brussels.

“In a world which is preparing to 200 million climate refugees by 2050 (World Bank’s estimate), many girls are migrating with children, getting pregnant on the way or leaving children behind”, revealed Mirela Shuteriqi, Technical Advisor on migration and trafficking, Terre des Hommes International Federation. In the case of Lampedusa, Italy, Terre des Hommes’ project in 2011 also showed that girl migrants had to share common spaces with adult men, lacked privacy and full protection, were under poor hygienic conditions, and had very limited access to health and psychosocial support. Many incidents of violence and sexual abuses were alleged. “Migrant girls are doubly vulnerable to the threats facing them as both girls and migrants”, stressed Veronique Mathieu, Member of European Parliament and Host of the conference.

“To prevent girls from falling into such situations, interventions should be done along migratory pathways, including in the country of origin, on the move, in transit and in the country of destination. Education must be improved, together with employment opportunities, the system of protection against child abuse, the fight against gender based violence and the diffusion of massive information on safe migration”, recommended Mirela Shuteriqi.

The Hearing was organized by the European Parliament Group of the European People’s Party and the European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development, under the patronage of the Member of European Parliament Véronique Mathieu. The event enjoyed participation from Members of the European Parliament, International Organizations, European Commission, NGOs and other actors.

Terre des hommes launched last May in the European Parliament a field report on the vulnerability of Bulgarian migrant children in Greece, reminded Edit Bauer, Member of the European Parliament and Chair of one session during the Hearing.