Interagency Gathering to Improve Child Protection in Emergencies

From 12-14 November, the first ever Child Protection Action Summit will take place in Stockholm. This will be an Interagency Gathering to Improve Child Protection in Emergencies. The CPC Summit is organized by the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), UNICEF, The Program on Forced Migration and Health at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health and Save the Children Sweden.

The purpose of this three day meeting is to improve the care and protection of children in crisis-affected countries in bringing political leaders, policymakers, donors, practitioners and researchers together. A special focus will be on strengthening linkages between research and program response and stress the importance of supporting child protection systems in emergencies.

The expectations from the event are that participants will:

• Engage in a policy dialogue on lessons learned from current work in child protection in crisis-affected settings, including a discussion about governments’ commitment to international treaties and national laws
• Discuss how to enhance coordination and funding for child protection
• Review major new developments – frameworks, strategies, methods and tools, and program evaluation evidence – to establish the baselines for current good and promising practice in the area of child care and protection in emergency settings
• Form partnerships to take the current state of knowledge forward through new operational-learning initiatives
• Finalize a set of commitments to professionalizing the field of practice, including specific practice milestones that the Summit participants commits to achieving
• The opening speech will be given by Gunilla Carlsson, Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation and Anders Nordström, Director General, Sida.

Attending the event 

The opening speech is to be given by Gunilla Carlsson, Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation and Anders Nordström, Director General, Sida.  

Other Key Speaker include:
Wijdan Mikheil, Minister for Human Rights in Iraq, on the challenges to fulfil the rights of children, and how the international community can assist the children in Iraq.
Aflodis Kagaba, Rwanda Youth Association for Human Rights Promotion and Development. How youth worked together to rebuild trust among Hutu and Tutsis after the genocide. Is it possible to live side by side after such a horrifying experience? How are children and youths best involved in peace processes? What are the long-lasting effects of genocide on the next generation?
Tonderai Chikuhwa, Office of the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict
Anette Musu Kiawu, Vice Minister, Ministry of Gender and Development in Liberia, about the work in her country to give better protection to women and children. 

Launch of the CPC Learning Network

During this meeting the CPC Learning Network will be launched and a global interagency learning agenda for the next three years will be established.

The goal of the Learning Network on the Care and Protection of Children in Crisis-Affected Countries is to strengthen and systematise child care and protection in crises-affected settings through collaborative action of humanitarian organisations, local institutions and academic partners.

The Program on Forced Migration and Health at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Christian Children’s Fund (CCF), International Rescue Committee (IRC), Save the Children, the Women’s Refugee Commission (formerly Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children), UNICEF, and several local organisations - including, PULIH Indonesia and the Institute for Development Studies in northern Uganda - have established an Agency Learning Network on the Care and Protection of Children in Crisis-Affected Countries (CPC Learning Network).

For more information

Please contact Mie Mielin