Rabat —The world’s increasing number of forcibly displaced children and the corresponding need to produce quality data to uphold their rights took centre stage this week at a three-day event organized by the International Data Alliance for Children on the Move (IDAC) and the Government of Morocco, held from 2 to 4 December 2024 in Rabat, Morocco. 

The 90 participants representing governments, international organizations, academia, civil society, youth and others working at the nexus of migration, displacement and child-specific data joined the event, demonstrating the global community’s growing recognition of its collective responsibility to improve data and statistics on behalf of the millions of migrant and displaced children worldwide.

Around the world, children continue to be forced from home at an unacceptable pace. At the end of 2023, conflict, violence and other crisis led to an estimated 47.2 million children to be on the move. This is a record high that shows no signs of slowing down. The 2023 global figure includes 17 million refugee children, 28.1 million internally displaced children and 2 million asylum-seeking children —it does not capture the additional 3.1 million children on the move due to climate or geophysical disasters.

Many of these children are deprived of the basic necessities they need to survive and thrive. However, due to the limited quality of data and statistics on children on the move, rights violations among this vulnerable population often continue without sufficient intervention. 

“Data collection, analysis and use have not kept pace with the rising tide of children on the move,” UNICEF’s Representative to Morocco, Mr. Marc Vincent, said in his opening remarks on behalf of the IDAC Secretariat. “Far too little is known about the individual circumstances of children on the move – where they come from, why they move, and to what extent their rights are being upheld – or not. Until these data gaps are addressed, migrant and displaced children will continue to be robbed of the kind of childhood that they are entitled to and that we have promised to give them.” 

“With the number of displaced children rising to 47.2 million in 2023, an increase of over 40% since IDAC was launched in 2020, the European Union is committed, more than ever, to ensuring that these children are not invisible in policy-making and programming. As a committed co-funder of IDAC, we recognise that improving data collection and analysis is crucial to safeguarding the rights of children on the move and ensuring that effective and evidence-informed interventions are in place to support their protection and well-being,” said Daniele Dotto, Deputy Head of Delegation of the European Union to Morocco.

IDAC’s event brought this critical child rights issue into focus. Participants conducted an in-depth assessment of migration and displacement data for children at national, regional, and global levels. The discussions addressed challenges in improving data systems, such as lack of standardization and limited investments, and explored solutions, including capacity-building efforts and adopting innovative methods for data collection and analysis.

Specific child populations on the move for whom the data gaps are particularly pronounced were also examined, such as stateless children, children who have migrated or been displaced due to climate change, or those who travel alone as unaccompanied minors. Too often, children take unsafe pathways, which has led to the death of almost 4,000 children over the past decade. Important analyses and best practices were also provided by a number of countries, providing compelling evidence of the inspiring national efforts taking place to close the data gaps on children on the move.  

Founded in 2020, IDAC is a cross-sectoral global coalition that aims to improve data and statistics and support evidence-based policymaking for migrant and displaced children. Co-funded by the European Union and jointly led by Eurostat, IOM, OECD, UNHCR and UNICEF (Secretariat Chair), IDAC brings together governments (including experts from national statistical offices and migration- and displacement-related ministries), international and regional organizations, NGOs, think tanks, academics, civil society and youth.

For more information, please contact:

Avand Azeez Agha avhasan@iom.int

Fatima Zahra El Atrach felatrach@unicef.org

Simon Pierre Diouf Dioufs@unhcr.org