MAINSTREAMINGMINEACTIONIN
CHILD PROTECTION
KEYACTIONSFORCHILD PROTECTION ACTORS[1]
Landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) present a significant and one of the primary physical risks to death and injury of children in humanitarian contexts. In addition, their presence exacerbates psychosocial distress among children, their care givers, families and communities and their impacts on family livelihoods can leave children at greater risk of violence, abuse and exploitation. Meanwhile, a number of key child protection activities comprise a core component of integrated and holistic supports and services for child survivors and victims of mines/ERW.In situations where contamination by explosive devices such as mines and ERW has been confirmed - including the presence of minefields, battlefields, scattered explosive remnants, improvised explosive devices, abandoned weapons and ammunition, etc. - the integration of mine action into child protection programming is a key life-saving and prevention and support measure for children.
The following checklist presents concrete actions that child protection actors can take to integrate Mine Action (MA) into their work. To ensure that actions are defined within the existing Child Protection in Emergencies normative framework that guides the Child Protection Working Group/Sub-Cluster, key actions for mainstreaming have been identified for each of the relevant Minimum Standard for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action.
Mine Action comprises activities which aim to reduce the social, economic and environmental impact of mines and ERW, the objective of which is to reduce risks of mines/ERW to a level where:a) people can live safely; b) in which economic, social and health development can occur free from constraints; and c) in which victims and survivors needs can be addressed. Mine Action consists of five main ‘pillars’, namely:
- Mine/ERW Risk Education (MRE)
- Humanitarian demining, including mine/ERW survey, mapping, marking and clearance;
- Victim assistance, including rehabilitation and reintegration of survivors;
- Stockpile destruction; and
- Advocacy again the use of indiscriminate weapons (mines, cluster munitions, etc) .
There are few humanitarian contexts where issues of mines/ERW are not relevant - in all conflict contexts where explosive weapons (including smaller weapons including ammunition) have/are being used, MA is necessary, as well as in situations of natural disaster when these occur in countries presently or previously contaminated by mines/ERW. Mine/ERW can move to new or unmarked areas as a result of disaster and/or populations from uncontaminated areas and unfamiliar with mine/ERW risks and prevention may be displaced to or through contamination or unmarked areas.
Coordination:
Liaise and coordinate with the Mine Action (MA) coordination mechanism (or the relevant Mine Action lead agency if no coordination mechanism exists), including through the identification of a MA focal point within the CP Sub-Cluster (and vice versa), with a specific focus on areas where CP and MA intersect, including: Mine/ERW Risk Education and protection messaging; Monitoring and incident reporting; referral and case management for child survivors and victims[2] of mines/ERWs.
Together with MA actors, ensure coordination on relevant issues with other Clusters as necessary. Eg: Health Cluster - medical response and children with disabilities; the Education Cluster - MRE for children; the Camp Coordination Cluster – accessible services for children with disabilities; etc.
Ensure that mine/ERW risks and activities to prevent and respond to these are integrated into relevant CP coordination processes, including preparedness and contingency planning, 4W mapping, rapid assessment, and the development of CP Strategic Plans.
Support the participation of Child Protection actors in mine/ERW safety briefing – all child protection staff should participate in at least one briefing. These briefings are usually facilitated by the MA authority (or MA lead agency) and are designed to update aid workers about i) the mine/ERW threat, ii) safety procedures for humanitarian staff.
Communications, advocacy and media:
Include risks and impacts of mines/ERW as a key CP issue for communications and advocacy, including by integrating mine/ERW incidents involving children and their families into findings/evidence on CP issues to be shared with stakeholders; and by highlighting the differential impacts of mines/ERW on girls, boys, women and men.
Integrate locally adapted mine/ERW risk education messages into CP messages communicated with schools, communities, family, children and authorities. The Infoasaid message library ( is an accessible resource where combined emergency MRE and child protection messages can be found.[3]
Ensure that the Minimum Standards on Media Response are applied to media depictions of child survivors and victims of mines/ERW.
In situations of armed conflict and in partnership with other protection actors, advocate for the integration of a mine action component (fencing, marking, clearance, risk education, victim assistance etc.) together with other relevant CP issues (e.g. CAAFAG) into the elaboration of cease-fire or peace agreements.
Information management:
Include mine/ERW and/or armed violence incident surveillance systems[4] and mine/ERWor/and armed violence victim assistance IM systems within Child Protection IMS mapping.
As much as possible, ensure consistency in case definitions on mine/ERW incidents and victims across MA and CP IMS to ensure that data can be systematically consolidated and analysed.
Child protection monitoring:
Specify mines/ERW as a specific cause under Killing and Maiming of Children within CP Monitoring systems, including the SC Res. 1612 Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism.
Ensure that referral pathways developed with other Sectors/Clusters to respond to cases identified through CP Monitoring include a mapping of integrated services for mine/ERW survivors and victims.
Share mine/ERW related data gathered through CP Monitoring systems with Mine Action actors in order to inform mine/ERW prevention and response activities and programmes, and vive-versa.
Include MA actors involved in incident surveillance in CP information management-related training to ensure that they are able to take the protection of children into consideration in their work.
Dangers and Injuries–mines/ERW are amongst the greatest physical risks to children in humanitarian contexts.
Support advocate efforts towards universalization and national implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty, Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, the Convention on Cluster Munitions, and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities;
Carry out mine/ERW risk education, including: a) through the integration of mine/ERW risks and prevention in community-based messaging, awareness and public education campaigns; b) the inclusion of mine/ERW risk education in non-formal and formal education and other relevant activities conducted through child protection programmes and life skills projects;
Liaise with MA actors for the prioritizatoin of mine and ERW fencing, marking andclearance in places where children go often (schools, hospitals, child friendly spaces, playgrounds, recreation areas, water collection points, etc);
Ensure that case management and referral mechanisms established in response to physical injury are inclusive of child survivors and victims of mines/ERW;
Advocate for and support the availability and accessibility of age and gender-appropriate holistic survivor/victim2 assistance for children affected by mines/ERW.
Physical violence & other harmful practices; Sexual violence; Child labor; Protecting excluded children
Consider that mine/ERW survivors and victims may be at particular risk of violence, abuse, exploitation, harmful practices and exclusion. Survivors because of the heightened risks faced by children with disabilities, and victims as a result of the loss or disability of a care giver or family bread winner. Social norms with regards to children or persons with disabilities may further exacerbate risks.
Psychosocial distress and mental disorders– comprises a core component of integrated and holistic supports and services for child survivors and victims of mines/ERW.
Include MA actors in training provided on psychological first aid (PFA);
Merge mine/ERW risk education messages and CP psychosocial support messages in awareness-raising campaigns;
Include support for child survivors and victims of mines/ERW in work to strengthen pre-existing community networks to provide psychosocial support to children and their families;
Ensure that child survivors and victims of mines/ERW are able to access and participate in support activities for children in the community;
Create opportunities for non-focused specialized care (such as PFA) for child survivors and victims of mines/ERW;
advocate to strengthen the provision by health actors of mental-health services for child survivors and victims of mines/ERW;
provide support to caregivers to better care for child survivors of mines/ERW, to deal with their own distress and to link them to basic services.
Children associated with armed forces or armed groups
Assess and ensure that the specific needs of child survivors of mines/ERW who may be associated with armed forces, including those with disabilities, are taken into consideration in the release and reintegration of CAAFAG;
Ensure the CAAFAG receive appropriate mine/ERW risk education.
Unaccompanied and separated children
Ensure unaccompanied and separated children living in - or returning to - areas contaminated by mines/ERW receive appropriate mine/ERW risk education.
Consider that child survivors of mines/ERW may be at particular risk of separation from their families, including institutionalization – suvivors because of the hightened risks faced by children with disabilities, and victims as a result of the loss or disability of a care giver or family bread winner;
Liaise with MA and health actors to prevent the separation of child survivors of mines/ERW who are evacuated and/or hospitalized;
Assess and ensure that the specific needs of child survivors of mines/ERW who are unaccompanied/separated from their care givers are taken into consideration in the identification, registration, interim/alternative care, development of care plans, tracing, assessment, reunification and follow-up.
Case management - comprises a core component of integrated and holistic supports and services for child survivors and victims of mines/ERW.
Map existing survivor/victim-assistance and other related services and analyse the capacity of existing organisations and others to address the needs of child survivors and victims of mines/ERWs;
Build capacity ofgovernment, CBOs and NGOs on collecting information and case management for child survivors and victims of mines/ERW;
Include child survivors of mines/ERW in the defining and sharing of criteria on who is a vulnerable child, building on definitions that already exist (including community-based definitions);
In conjunction with MA and other relevant actors, develop standard operating procedures on addressing child survivors and victims of mines/ERW, by defining criteria and processes for registration, referral and follow-up linked to best interest;
Work closely with community-based child-protection mechanisms to identify girls, boys and families who are mine/ERW victims and who have or are vulnerable to child-protection risks for referral to the case management system, to encourage community support, and to provide ongoing monitoring.
Community-based mechanisms
Include services, mechanisms and support for mine/ERW survivors in the mapping and capacity building of local formal and informal supports, service providers and support mechanisms for child protection;
Include mine/ERW survivors in the selection, recruitment and training of volunteers from the community to protect children from, and support child survivors of, abuse, violence, exploitation and neglect;
Include mines/ERW in the identification of risk scenarios for boys and girls in emergency situations, the development and implementation of community response plans;
Identify projects with community-based groups which can be carried out by community members, including children, young people, and child survivors if appropriate, to address mine/ERW risks and provide support for these initiatives, including liaising with MA actors for the provision of appropriate mine/ERW risk education materials;
Mobilize and strengthen peer-to-peer supports for child victims/survivors of mines/ERW;
Carry out effective community level messaging on preventing mine/ERW incidents.
Child-friendly spaces
Ensure that children with disabilities are able to access CFS and equally participate in CFS activities;
Fully involve boys, girls, women and men in the community who are affected by mines/ERW in developing and supporting CFS activities;
Include mine/ERW survivors and victims in the recruitment of animators from the community;
Include the integration of specific considerations for mine/ERW victims and survivors in the training, coaching and follow-up support for animators;
Integration mine/ERW risk education into CFS activities;
Mainstreaming Child Protection – a number of humanitarian sectors comprises core components of integrated and holistic supports and services for child survivors and victims of mines/ERW.
Advocate and support age and gender specific considerations and ensure that the needs of child suvivors and victims of mines/ERW are integrated within in the Economic Recovery, Education and Health Sectors.
Fore more information or guidance on mainstreaming Mine Action into Child Protection Programming, please contact: Ayda Idoia Eke ()
[1]This checklist provides an overview of Mine Action-specific considerations drawn from the Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Settings
[2]Survivors are those children who have been directly affected and injured by mines/ERWs, while victims are those who have been indirectly effected, such as children whose care givers have been killed or injured/left with a disability.
[3]By typing the words ‘child protection’ and ‘mines’ (or ERW, or ‘mine action’, etc.) into the Infoasaid Message Library, the search engine will automatically produce combined MRE/CP messages.
[4]Note that mine/ERW incidents are sometimes incorporated within broader armed violence surveillance systems.