Coram International has recently been awarded a large-scale institutional contract to carry out a Situation Analysis (SitAn) of Children Affected by Migration in Southeast Asia on behalf of UNICEF EAPRO. The consultancy falls under a wider EU-funded programme to protect children affected by migration in Southeast, South and Central Asia between 2018 and 2021. The SitAn aims to contribute to the evidence base on ‘children affected by migration’ in the region, including migrant children, internally forcibly displaced children, cross-border migrants, refugees and asylum seekers and ‘children left behind’, as well as undocumented, stateless, smuggled and trafficked children. The research will investigate the protection risks facing these populations of children, including new risks emerging in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the scale and drivers of child migration in the region, with a particular focus on Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. The study will employ a mixed-methods approach to data collection. Qualitative interviews will be conducted with key stakeholders at the regional and national level, as well as community members, children and families in each of the focus countries, in order to gather in-depth contextual information on the realities of child migration in the region. Quantitative methods will be employed in order to elaborate upon and quantify the drivers, risks and experiences identified by the qualitative research. Primary data collection will be preceded by an in-depth literature review and legislative analysis of regional, bilateral and national laws relevant to children affected by migration in the 10 ASEAN states.
In 2019 Coram International was contracted to conduct a situation analysis of children in the ten ASEAN member states (Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam). The analysis and report first considers progress in the region in the 30 years since the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the child across health, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene, education, child protection and social protection. It then moves on to consider remaining challenges, emerging issues and opportunities in the early years (early moments matter), in the context of environment (safe and sustainable environment) and in adolescence (adolescent potential unleashed), particularly in light of the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda. The report concludes with recommendations for future action. The final report is available via this link.
In 2018, Coram International was contracted by UNICEF to conduct a study on good practices of community-based programmes to support family preservation and the prevention of family separation. The study maps the existing community-based programmes supporting family preservation and the prevention of family separation in five key provinces in Cambodia, and identifies good practices and opportunities for development. The study also assesses which international examples of best practice in community-based programming can be applied to the Cambodian context and which in-country examples can be scaled-up to maximise capacity and effectiveness. The findings of this mapping and evaluative exercise inform the development of a theoretical business model of successful community-based programmes supporting family preservation, and an advocacy paper proposing best practice in community-based programming as an alternative to residential care targeted at potential donors.
In 2017, Coram International was contracted by UNICEF to conduct a formative evaluation of UNICEF’s Child Protection Programme in Cambodia. The mixed methods evaluation aimed to provide credible evidence on the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of the UNICEF’s work with the Government of Cambodia, national and sub-national institutions, provincial authorities, social service providers, communities, and others working on improving protection of vulnerable girls and boys, and preventing unnecessary family separation. The evaluation reviewed the results of the Programme, assessed UNICEF’s leadership in the sector and examined linkages between outputs. It also informed the development of a new theory of change to measure progress and contributed to the design of Cambodia’s new Country Programme 2019-2023.
In 2016, Coram International was contracted by UNICEF to undertake an in-depth study in order to build a solid knowledge-base on different forms of community-based alternative care practices, including Pagoda-based care in Cambodia. The research study, implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Social Affairs, was used to inform child care sector reform in Cambodia. The study was implemented to meet the urgent need to better understand the practices of family and community-based care alternatives, especially in light of the Cambodian Government’s commitment to re-integrate children currently living in residential care into community-based care arrangements. The study assessed the different forms of alternative care in the community, particularly kinship care, foster care, group homes and pagoda-based care, and analysed to what degree these forms of care are in compliance with the national and international Minimum Standards of Alternative Care for Children. It also looked into the costs and funding sources of the different forms of community-based alternative care in Cambodia. The report is available via this link.
In 2015, Coram International was contracted by UNICEF Cambodia to develop a framework and introductory narrative for the National Action Plan to Prevent and Respond to Violence against Children. The consultancy supported the Government in developing a five-year, costed, inter-ministerial action plan to address violence against children, and involves: identifying gaps and synergies in existing Government plans and strategies, in particular the National Action Plan on Violence against Women; carrying out an extensive desk review to identify lessons learnt and good practices on interventions to prevent and respond to violence against children from other countries, focusing on inter-sectoral and life cycle approaches; prepare inputs for technical working groups responsible for drafting sections of the Action Plan; and preparing a framework and final drafts for the narrative sections of the action plan.
In 2013, Professor Carolyn Hamilton and Coram International conducted a mapping and analysis of national legislation related to violence against children in each of the ten ASEAN Member States (Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam). This mapping and analysis compared national legislation to international laws, standards and best practices, including the recommendations and findings from UNICEF’s Violence Against Children Study. The project included a detailed comparison across the ten ASEAN Member States, highlighting common issues, concerns, or successes and making recommendations for legislative reform.