Albania
Operating in Albania since 1993, Terre des hommes (Tdh) has been running projects that aim to tackle issues of child trafficking and child protection. In 2011, almost 10,000 people benefited from the activities implemented.
The context
Human trafficking in Albania became widespread with the fall of communism in the early 90s. Most victims were women and girls aged 15 to 25 who were sold as sex workers. Other victims included those trafficked for forced labor and children who were used for forced begging. Greece was the primary destination followed by Italy. Despite lack of solid data and research, common knowledge suggests that this phenomenon has decreased in recent years whilst various forms of internal trafficking and exploitation, fueled by pervasive poverty, have taken its place. Over 50% of the victims are under 18. Children from Roma and other vulnerable communities are particularly exposed to the dangers of forced labor and begging.
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19.819651
41.332908
Tirana
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20.790153
40.619771
Korça
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20.239334
40.997831
Elbasan
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20.66381
40.901791
Pogradec
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19.44849
41.324052
Durrës
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19.659805
40.942876
Fier
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20.235214
40.215901
Gjirokaster
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20.000067
39.86934
Saranda
Centered at 20.168331 41.153332 7
Children's situation
- 22.6% of the population is less than 14 years old
- 14 children out of 1000 die before the age of 5 (CH: 5‰)
- 12% of the 5 to14 years old children work
Delegate: Sendrine Constant
Expatriate staff: 1
National staff: 34
Budget: 500 000 CHF
In collaboration with: Municipalities, Education, BKTF, ARSIS, Amarodrom, Romani Baxt, FBSh, CILPS, CAAP, Roma CBOs and many others
Establishing Child Protection Units
Tdh is supporting the establishment and capacity development of Child Protection Units (CPU) in several municipalities in charge of identifying children in need or at risk of abuse, exploitation, violence and/or trafficking. The CPUs provide child protection through case management model, and offer direct support and services by coordinating actions and protective measures taken by the various multi-disciplinary actors involved. Tdh directly supports the work of 8 out of 18 CPUs currently operational in Albania; the others are supported by Tdh’s close partners.
Strengthening child protection within the education system
Tdh is assisting schools to play an active part in the child protection system through capacity building in order for them to be better equipped to identify children in need of support, refer them to adequate services and facilitate their integration in the school environment.
Supporting vulnerable communities
In partnership with Roma organisations, Tdh supports the development of Community Counselling Groups which offer child protection advice and counselling to vulnerable families and help identify and refer cases of children in need or at risk by linking them to the appropriate public and non-public service providers in their localities.
Direct support to improving well-being and resilience of vulnerable children
At the local level, Tdh supports the organization of psychosocial activities for vulnerable children, and strengthen the capacities of local caregivers from NGOs, schools, social workers, residential institutions to deliver quality services for children including through sports and recreational activities.
The Child Protection Safety Net project has contributed in 2011 to positively impact the lives of 4528 vulnerable children in need of protection from various forms of abuse, neglect, exploitation and trafficking. Furthermore, around 2300 children have benefitted from the Movement, Games and Sport activities, developed in the frame of MOVE project. Those results were achieved through ongoing capacity building of 812 social assistants, school psychologists, rural community members and staff in residential institutions. Other efforts included fostering a participatory approach through comprehensive information sharing and disseminating a relevant communication strategy at local, regional and national levels.
