Tackling COVID-19's Hidden Crisis: Violence Against Children

"The COVID-19 crisis: An unprecedented global emergency with profound child rights implications" - Cornelius Williams, Associate Director of Child Protection, UNICEF

In a webinar on May 13 2020, the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children and the Office of the Special Representative to the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children (SRSG VAC), brought together nearly 1,000 people from over 130 countries around the world to discuss local, national, and global perspectives on and responses to violence against children amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

The webinar explored themes including:

• Articulating the need for a unified global response to protect children - Panellists spoke about how the pandemic, which began as a health crisis, has evolved into a broader crisis of child rights and child protection. The restrictions (e.g., lockdowns) and deprivations (e.g., due to unemployment) associated with the pandemic only increase the stressors that had already led many children to be subjected to violent abuse and discipline. Meanwhile, typical modalities for engaging with families and for delivering child protection services have been disrupted (e.g., due to social distancing), which has forced organisations and agencies to rethink traditional ways of communication.
• Disseminating good practices at the country level (as two of the speakers did during the webinar - see below) and recognising the importance of contextualising programmes to each country and community.
• Utilising the Leaders' Call for Action to Protect Children during COVID-19 to catalyse action through targeted policy calls - This statement, which is available in seven languages, calls for an urgent, united effort to address violence against children as part of the broader response to COVID-19. Forbes commented, "No single type of actor can deliver what's needed for children's protection right now. Various actors are needed, and those actors play different roles based on context."
• Including children as key actors in the prevention and response to violence - For example, Maria Schillaci, Program Director of the Barnafrid National Centre On Violence Against Children in Sweden, discussed the need for assessments and data from children's perspectives, especially those with special vulnerabilities. Also in Sweden, the Minister for Children's Rights held a dedicated press conference to enable children to meet with the minister and experts to ask direct questions about COVID-19 and discuss their needs.
• Creating and sustaining long-term strategies for COVID-19 and beyond - One way the End Violence Partnership is supporting the effort is by sharing knowledge - not only through this and other webinars, but through links to resources shared during the webinar and to other resources for protecting children during COVID-19 shared on the End Violence Partnership website. (See also the links provided as part of the Q&A that emerged during the webinar.)

Examples of activities on the ground from specific organisations represented by webinar speakers are:

• Speaker Cornelius Williams, Associate Director of Child Protection of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), cited UNICEF's national mentorships programme to provide families in Jamaica with positive parenting resources and support services. In the Dominican Republic, the agency is working with national authorities to ensure the continuity of standard operating procedures to mitigate online sexual exploitation as children's time with digital devices (e.g., for remote learning) increases. And in Bangladesh, UNICEF is supporting the child protection hotline to ensure national authorities can accommodate the surge in calls and strengthen the referral pathway for children in need. Click here to view Williams' 5-slide presentation in PDF format.]
• Bill Forbes, Global Sector Lead for Child Protection and Participation for World Vision International, shared several examples of that organisation's work to respond to challenges on the ground in several countries. For instance, World Vision worked with the Mongolian government to launch an online chatbox as part of the national child helpline to identify and respond to protection issues. In Brazil, the organisation has delivered "tenderness boxes" to promote positive parenting and empathy in the home during this difficult time. World Vision has also collaborated with 80,000 churches and mosques around the world to help them identify and monitor child protection issues. [Click here to view Forbes' 6-slide presentation in PDF format.]

The End Violence Partnership is a public-private partnership established by the UN Secretary General in 2016. End Violence is made up of over 450 partners and acts as a global platform for advocacy, evidence-based action, and investments to end all forms of violence against children. The End Violence Partnership focuses on keeping children safe at home and in their community, online, and in and through schools.