Europe and Central Asia

GENEVA, 9 April 2024 – “UNICEF welcomes the efforts by EU Member States to work towards a more predictable system for managing migration. As they move toward a final agreement on the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, UNICEF calls for the principles of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights, and the Convention…

In Lampedusa, a small island in southern Italy close to the Tunisian coast is the first landing point for many people crossing the Central Mediterranean route in search of safety, peace and better opportunities. Children, the majority of whom are travelling alone without their parents, and pregnant women are among those arriving on wooden boats or…, From her eyes, (based on the testimony of Anaya* collected during the first week of July at the Lampedusa hotspot) "How long do I have to stay here? When can we leave? It's strange to have come this far and be stuck in this place, not knowing what happens now and what will happen next. I often see them calling some people, they get on a bus and leave from here.…

GENEVA, 14 JULY 2023 – “The number of children who have lost their lives while attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe has doubled in the first half of this year compared to the same period last year. "Driven by conflict and climate change, more and more children are putting their lives at great risk while making the dangerous…

Nobody chooses to be a refugee. They flee afraid, without their belongings and anxious about what the future holds. “I remember feeling lost. We got off at the station. I didn’t know the city; I didn’t know where exactly I was,” recalls Oksana. “There were lots of people around, but when you don’t know the language, you don’t know who to ask for…, A journey to safety, “We tried to stay in Ukraine for a few months, but the last drop for me was when my son started screaming at night. That’s when I understood that we can’t stay,” recalls Oksana. “Before coming to Poland, I was getting ready for the journey. I was reading about Krakow online and that’s when I learned that there is a Blue Dot at the train station,…, A new beginning, The first days and weeks in a new country are mostly about arranging the basics – finding a place to live, enrolling children in school, getting access to healthcare. But for Oksana it was particularly important to get guidance on how to verify the disability status of her sons in Poland and how to access specialist care and education, all of…, It’s hard to say what’s next, When you are a refugee, it is difficult to have clear plans for the future. Many refugee mothers in Poland experience emotional distress, they miss home and loved ones. Most families would like to return to Ukraine, but it is unclear if and when that will be possible. “For now, we have made a decision to stay here at least until the end of the…

ATHENS/GENEVA/ROME, 15 June 2023 – “UNICEF is deeply saddened and shaken by multiple reports of up to a hundred children being among those trapped in the hold of a ship which capsized and sank off the coast of Greece yesterday, in the Mediterranean’s largest sea tragedy in recent years.   “We can assume that many of these children will have lost…

GENEVA/NEW YORK, 14 June 2023 – By the end of 2022, a record 43.3 million children lived in forced displacement, according to UNICEF estimates, many of them for their entire childhood. The number of children forcibly displaced from their homes doubled in the last decade, outpacing efforts to include and protect refugee and internally displaced…

"Every physical expression of pain, difficulty in eating, sleeping, and carrying out simple daily activities are all signals of a constant state of alertness, simple mechanisms that the body activates when one feels in danger and needs to defend themselves from something," said Diego Manduri, a clinical psychologist. These are generally the…

Following eight years of armed conflict in eastern Ukraine, at dawn on 24 February 2022, the Russian Federation launched a military incursion across the country. The event displaced millions in search of safety, protection, and humanitarian assistance, creating the fastest growing refugee emergency since World War II. By the end of March 2022,…, Meeting the needs and priorities of beneficiaries and stakeholders 1. UNICEF adopted a twin-track approach to expanding its country presence, undertaking strategic advocacy and negotiation at national level in parallel with programmatic activity on the ground. Its strategic narrative of the Child Protection dimensions of the crisis was…, Conclusions , Overall, the evaluation finds that UNICEF’s response to the regional refugee crisis was swiftly executed, effective and appropriate for context. Prioritising response delivery through national systems and placing the ‘best interests of [every] child’ at the heart of the response, helped built its reputation as a principled and impartial actor.…, Recommendations, Corporate, Extend links to political and security intelligence systems. Review UNICEF’s emergency response model for middle- and high-income settings/protracted crises. (in line with findings from the Humanitarian Review and COVID-19 evaluation) Build emergency capacity across UNICEF, including for national staff in contexts with low emergency propensity.…, Regional, At regional level, interpret the CCCs for this context. Generate a clear corporate statement and position on gender in the response. (in line with the Humanitarian Review) Centralise lesson learning in the response, building on the coordination meetings now being held. Build emergency preparedness, geared to an ethos of systems-strengthening into…, Evaluation of UNICEFs Response to Support the Influx of Refugees from Ukraine Final Report | March 2023 ii Evaluation of UNICEFs Response to Support the Influx of Refugees from Ukraine | Final Report, 2023 The statements in this publication are the views of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the policies or the views of UNICEF. The…

GENEVA, 8 July 2020 - IOM, the International Organization for Migration, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and UNICEF, the UN Children’s Fund today welcomed the latest relocations of 49 unaccompanied asylum-seeking and migrant children from Greece to Portugal and Finland. Twenty-four unaccompanied asylum-seeking children left Greece and arrived safely…

ROME, Italy - 8 November 2019 – The estimated 60,000 young refugees and migrants who arrived in Italy as unaccompanied children between 2014 and 2018, and who have since turned 18, require ongoing support to ensure their successful transition into adulthood, said UNICEF, UNHCR and IOM in a new report published today. The report, At the crossroad:…

GENEVA, 28 June 2018 – “As Member States meet to discuss the EU migration policy, UNICEF is urging the European Union and its Member States to take concerted, united and timely action to save the lives of refugee and migrant children before they reach Europe, and address the uncertainty and insecurity they endure on arrival. “A well-managed and…

  GENEVA, 22 June 2018 – “Ahead of the European Council’s upcoming meetings on asylum and migration, UNICEF urges all leaders to prioritize the protection of children, regardless of their or their parents’ immigration status. “Any new EU migration policy must consider the critical need to provide safe passages and legal pathways for refugee and…