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 carried out a qualitative study on the child protection risks and needs of migrant children and families, along with the capacity of the child protection system to address the needs of migrants. The study also examined cross-border arrangements with Myanmar and Cambodia authorities on child trafficking and other child protection cases with cross-border dimensions. The research took place in four provinces in which there are large populations of migrants (Greater Bangkok, Ranong, Sa Keao and Tak), and included a series of key informant interviews, file reviews, focus group discussions with adolescents and parents / carers and individual in-depth interviews with migrant children and families who have been involved in the child protection system. It resulted in a series of concrete recommendations based on the findings and international guidance and best practice evidence.
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 2017, Coram International was commissioned by UNICEF to conduct a qualitative and quantitative baseline assessment of 3 specific indicators related to the functioning of the child protection system and coordination of child protection services in Thailand. Indicator 1 measures the percentage of children identified as either at risk of or exposed to violence (in the previous fiscal year in target sub-districts) who had received child protection services. Indicator 2 measures the percentage of sub-districts that apply standard case management procedures. Indicator 3 measures the percentage of provincial child protection committees that had a child protection annual work plan and data collection system in the previous fiscal year. Data from this baseline was measured against a future end-line evaluation to track changes in child protection indicators in UNICEF programme intervention sites.
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.
In 2012, Coram International conducted a study on young people’s perceptions and attitudes on issues related to violence against women and girls in Lao PDR and Thailand in order to strengthen the evidence base on prevention of violence against women and girls in East and Southeast Asia. The assessment involved a series of highly participatory interviews and interactive group discussions across Thailand and Lao PDR, preceded by a thorough study of laws, polices and social norms on violence against women in the region. Coram International presented findings, analysis and recommendations through a report and a participatory data validation workshop including UN Women, UNICEF, the Ministry of Education, teachers and young people. This included the development of concrete recommendations for reform, and increased understanding of the root causes and social constructs that lead to gender based violence. The study informed the design of primary prevention interventions designed to address the causes of gender based violence.