The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a United Nations agency that provides services and advice concerning migration to governments and migrants, including internally displaced persons, refugees, and migrant workers.
Best interests or best interests of the child is a child rights principle, which derives from Article 3 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which says that "in all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private social welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration". Assessing the best interests of a child means to evaluate and balance "all the elements necessary to make a decision in a specific situation for a specific individual child or group of children".
International adoption is a type of adoption in which an individual or couple residing in one country becomes the legal and permanent parent(s) of a child who is a national of another country. In general, prospective adoptive parents must meet the legal adoption requirements of their country of residence and those of the country whose nationality the child holds.
Trafficking of children is a form of human trafficking and is defined by the United Nations as the "recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, and/or receipt" kidnapping of a child for the purpose of slavery, forced labour, and exploitation. This definition is substantially wider than the same document's definition of "trafficking in persons". Children may also be trafficked for adoption.
Child protection refers to the safeguarding of children from violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect. It involves identifying signs of potential harm. This includes responding to allegations or suspicions of abuse, providing support and services to protect children, and holding those who have harmed them accountable.
An unaccompanied minor is a child without the presence of a legal guardian.
Sphere is a global movement started in 1997 aiming to improve the quality of humanitarian assistance. The Sphere standards are the most commonly used and most widely known set of core humanitarian standards. Sphere's flagship publication is the Sphere Handbook.
Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation. Human trafficking can occur within a country or trans-nationally. It is distinct from people smuggling, which is characterized by the consent of the person being smuggled.
Dr. Neil Boothby is a psychologist and former US Government special advisor and senior coordinator to the USAID administrator on Children in Adversity, and former director of the Program on Forced Migration and Health at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. Currently, he is the founding Director of the Global Center for the Development of the Whole Child at the University of Notre Dame. His research focuses on the psychosocial consequences of organized violence on children. As a senior representative of UNICEF, UNHCR, and Save the Children, he has worked for more than 25 years with children in crises in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe and is an internationally recognized expert and advocate for children affected by war and displacement. He has received numerous awards for his work on behalf of war-affected children, including the Red Cross International Humanitarian of the Year Award, the Mickey Leland Award, the United Nation's Golden Achievement Award for Social Services, and Duke University's Humanitarian Service Award.
Child migration or "children in migration or mobility" is the movement of people ages 3–18 within or across political borders, with or without their parents or a legal guardian, to another country or region. They may travel with or without legal travel documents. They may arrive to the destination country as refugees, asylum seekers, or economic migrants.
Child abduction or child theft is the unauthorized removal of a minor from the custody of the child's natural parents or legally appointed guardians.
Ethiopia is a source country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically conditions of forced labor and forced prostitution. Girls from Ethiopia's rural areas are forced into domestic servitude and, less frequently, commercial sexual exploitation, while boys are subjected to forced labor in traditional weaving, gold mining, agriculture, herding, and street vending. Small numbers of Ethiopian girls are forced into domestic servitude outside Ethiopia, primarily in Djibouti and Sudan. While Ethiopian boys are subjected to forced labor in Djibouti as shop assistants and errand boys.
The Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) is an open global network of members working together to ensure all persons the right to quality and safe education in emergencies and post-crisis recovery. INEE members are from NGOs, UN agencies, donor agencies, governments, academic institutions, schools, and affected populations.
The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) is a program of the Administration for Children and Families, an office within the United States Department of Health and Human Services, created with the passing of the United States Refugee Act of 1980. The Office of Refugee Resettlement offers support for refugees seeking safe haven within the United States, including victims of human trafficking, those seeking asylum from persecution, survivors of torture and war, and unaccompanied alien children. The mission and purpose of the Office of Refugee Resettlement is to assist in the relocation process and provide needed services to individuals granted asylum within the United States.
Children and Families Across Borders (CFAB) is a national charity founded in 1955 that provides advice in resolving international child protection cases.
PULSE Foundation is a Bulgarian non-governmental organization, registered on July 7, 1999, under the name “Animus – Pernik”. Since the beginning of 2002, the organization continues its charitable activity under the name “PULSE” – “Positive Personal Skills in Society”. In 2015, PULSE Foundation operated with 19 full-time employees and over 40 youth volunteers.
Transnational child protection refers to the protection of children from violence, exploitation, abuse and neglect in an international setting. When a non-national child comes into contact with public authorities and service providers, a series of checks, assessments and immediate measures sets in to identify the child and to assess her or his situation. Article 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child provides for the protection of children in and out of the home, including in their country of origin, residence or a third country. Article 2 of the Convention provides for the right to non-discrimination, meaning children have the right to protection regardless of the national origin or status of the child or his or her parents or legal guardians.
The Ministry of Migration and Asylum is the official government body that oversees migration and asylum policy issues in Greece. It also contributes and implements European policies on Migration. It collaborates with the European Union Agency for Asylum, the International Organization for Migration and the United Nations. It receives funding from the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, the Internal Security Fund and the European Recovery and Resilience Fund. The Ministry of Migration and Asylum was established in January 15, 2020. The Ministry of Migration Policy, established in 2016, was abolished on July 8, 2019.
