Protection against gender, disability and age based violence

During humanitarian situations, acts of violence such as rape, harassment and physical aggression often increase in prevalence and can have serious and lasting consequences that further endanger survivors' lives. Such acts can include permanent impairment, death or a whole range of physical, psychosocial and mental health problems that negatively affect survivors' self-respect and quality of life and expose them to the risk of further abuse whilst internally displaced or refugee status. These consequences can result in a vicious circle of violence and ill-treatment, as survivors may be rejected by their families, excluded and stigmatised by society, or even arrested, placed in detention and punished and sometimes even subjected to further violence because they sought protection, assistance or access to justice.

According to the World Bank and WHO, 15% of the world’s population has a disability and these individuals are frequently reported to be at increased risk of violence, especially during a humanitarian crisis. Adults and children with disabilities are at a higher risk of violence than non-disabled adults and children, and those with mental illnesses could be particularly vulnerable. Please refer to our Disability and violence key list that raises awareness about violence against people with disabilities, gender-based violence and violence against children disabilities.

It is important to support survivors through inclusive protection and response mechanisms during humanitarian situations to prevent further acts of violence and to advocate for safety and justice. This is supported by articles 11 and 16 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

This key list highlights resources for protection against gender, disability and age based violence in humanitarian situations. We welcome your suggestions, please send comments or suggested additions to sourceassistant@hi-uk.org.

Selected resources

Clinical management of rape survivors : developing protocols for use with refugees and internally displaced persons

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
June 2004

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"This guide describes best practices for clinical management of people who have been raped in emergency situations. It is intended for adaptation to each situation, taking into account national policies and practices, and availability of materials and drugs. This guide is intended for use by qualified health-care providers in developing protocols for the management of rape survivors in emergencies, taking into account available resources, materials, and drugs, and national policies and procedures. It can also be used in planning health-care services and training health-care providers. The document includes detailed guidance on the clinical management of women, men and children who have been raped"

Comprehensive responses to gender based violence in low-resource settings : lessons learned from implementation

KEESBURY, Jill
ASKEW, Ian
June 2010

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"This document reviews the findings, lessons learned, and promising practices in the provision of comprehensive SGBV services in sub-Saharan Africa. It draws on the data generated by the network partners to identify core issues in the provision of quality, comprehensive care for survivors of SGBV. These findings are intended to serve as a resource for programmers and policymakers throughout the region, and contribute to the emerging evidence-base on such program strategies"

Gender-based violence prevention and response : a methodological guide

BRANCHAT, Julia
DUPLESSY, Constance
2010

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This methodological guide is the result of a cross-disciplinary project to consolidate the experiences and tools on gender-based violence. As well as a general presentation of the issue of gender-based violence, this guide presents various aspects of caring for victims of violence, awareness-raising activities and arguments that can accompany those activities. It aims to facilitate the development and implementation of actions to combat gender-based violence and to enhance the quality of interventions in the field. Best practices and know-how are also highlighted. This guide will of use to anyone interested in gender-based violence and developing gender-based violence prevention and response initiatives
Note: web link will take you to a page which is in French. Scroll down the page to images of the report where French, English and Spanish links to the report are provided

Handbook for coordinating gender-based violence interventions in humanitarian settings

WARD, Jeanne
LAFRENIERE, Julie
July 2010

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This Handbook has been produced by the global Gender-based Violence (GBV) Area of Responsibility Working Group as a quick reference tool for all individuals and agencies involved in GBV programming and coordination in humanitarian/emergency settings. The handbook contains practical guidance on leadership roles, key responsibilities and specific actions to be taken when establishing and maintaining a GBV coordination mechanisms in a humanitarian setting. The focus is primarily on work that should be done to scale up coordination from the onset of an emergency (both conflict and natural disasters) but is also relevant to contingency planning and post-emergency stabilization phases
The goal of the handbook is to improve coordination capacity at the field level in order to facilitate accessible, prompt, confidential and appropriate services for survivors according to a basic set of principles and to put in place mechanisms to prevent GBV
The handbook can also be used as an advocacy tool to educate non-GBV programmers--including UN personnel, government officials, NGO staff and donors--about basic protection responsibilities related to GBV coordination, prevention and response

Immunization in practice : a guide for health workers

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
2004

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Contents: Module 1. Target diseases -- module 2. The vaccines -- module 3. The cold chain -- module 4. Ensuring safe injections -- module 5. Planning immunization session to reach every infant -- module 6. Holding an immunization session -- module 7. Monitoring and using you data -- module 8. Building community support for immunization

Out from the shadows : sexual violence against children with disabilities

ELLERY, Francis
LANSDOWNE, Gerison
CSÁKY, Corinna
2011

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This document is an advocacy report on sexual violence against children with disabilities. It is based on evidence generated from a literature review and primary research in four African countries. Adults with disabilities who had been abused as children were interviewed, as well as carers, lawyers, judges, police, social workers, teachers and members of disabled people's organisations. The report concludes with a set of recommendations, developed in consultation with children, young people and professionals working globally on this issue

Sexual and gender based violence in Africa : literature review

RUMBOLD, Victoria
February 2008

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"This literature review is intended to inform partners in the Population Council-coordinated regional network that aims to develop a multi-sectoral and comprehensive response to SGBV (Sexual and Gender Based Violence) in Eastern, Central and Southern Africa. The review is structured around seven components collectively designed to meet the medical, psychological and justice needs of survivors of sexual violence. The components consist of a comprehensive review of region-specific policies, programmatic experiences and best practices relating to the appropriate medical management of sexual violence, enabling effective criminal justice responses to all SGBV cases, and the reduction of levels of violence at the community level"

Sexual and gender-based violence against refugees, returnees and internally displaced persons : guidelines for prevention and response

UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (UNHCR)
May 2003

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"These Guidelines are intended to be used by the staff of UNHCR, UN agencies, inter-governmental and non-governmental organisations and host government agencies who provide protection and assistance to refugees and persons of concern to UNHCR. They are also intended to guide activities initiated by refugee communities themselves to prevent and address the problem. They examine the root causes of and factors contributing to sexual and gender-based violence and suggest practical actions to be taken to help prevent and respond to this kind of violence"

Sphere guidelines : humanitarian charter and minimum standards in humanitarian response|3rd Ed

THE SPHERE PROJECT
2011

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This handbook establishes shared principles and a set of universal minimum standards in core areas of humanitarian response. It provides a new chapter on protection principles, which considers the protection and safety of populations affected by disaster or armed conflict as an integral part of humanitarian response. It describes core standards for effective and accountable humanitarian response and advocacy, and outlines the minimum standards in the following four technical chapters: water supply, sanitation and hygiene promotion; food security and nutrition; shelter, settlement and non-food items; and health action. Each minimum standard highlights key actions, key indicators and guidance notes
This edition also addresses emerging issues, such as climate change, disaster risk reduction, early recovery of services and livelihoods, cash transfers, and civil-military relations. Understanding and supporting local responses to disaster is a priority reflected in the whole handbook, as is reinforcing the capacity of local actors
This handbook is useful to all working in humanitarian response

The gender-based violence information management system user guide

GENDER BASED VIOLENCE IMFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (GBVIMS)
2010

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This comprehensive user guide explains what the Gender-Based Violence Information Management System (GBVIMS) is, why it is important and how it works. It is also a training tool on how to use the GBVIMS and related tools through hands-on, self-learning activities. It is intended to be both a reference document and a training manual for both service providers with specific services in place for GBV survivors, such as case management or health services, and agencies or actors coordinating multisectoral GBV interventions within a humanitarian context. This could include local national and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs), state actors, community-based organizations (CBOs) and/or UN agencies operating within a humanitarian context
Note: free registration is required to access the guide
Note: the guide is available as one document, or as individual chapters and annexes. A workbook is also available

Violence against women and girls : a compendium of monitoring and evaluation indicators

BLOOM, Shelah
2008

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"This guide was developed for managers, organizations, and policy makers working in the field of VAW/G [Violence Against Women and Girls] program implementation and evaluation in developing countries, as well as for people who provide technical assistance to these individuals and organizations. Indicators were developed to measure the following areas within VAW/G : 1. Magnitude and characteristics of different forms of VAW/G (skewed sex rations, intimate partner violence, violence from someone other than an intimate partner, female genital cutting/mutilation and child marriage); 2. Programs addressing VAW/G by sector (health, education, justice/security, social welfare); 3. Under-documented forms of VAW/G and emerging areas (humanitarian emergencies, trafficking in persons, femicide), and preventing VAW/G (youth, community mobilization, working with men and boys). The indicators can also be used by programs that may not specifically focus on VAW/G, but include reducing levels of VAW/G as part of their aims. The indicators have been designed [to] address information needs that can be assessed with quantitative methods to measure program performance and achievement at the community, regional and national levels. While many of the indicators have been used in the field, they have not necessarily been tested in multiple settings"

WHO ethical and safety recommendations for researching, documenting and monitoring sexual violence in emergencies

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
June 2007

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This document builds on previous WHO publications and explores the different reasons for collecting information about sexual violence in emergency situations. It applies to all forms of enquiry about sexual violence and makes a number of recommendations that are intended to ensure that the necessary safety and ethical safeguards are in place at the beginning of any information gathering exercise. The document sets out the key safety and ethical issues that need to be addressed and the questions that need to be asked. There are examples of good practice and details of further information and resources that are available. This document is not intended to be a standalone guidance document but is designed to complement existing internationally-agreed ethical guidelines for research and to inform ethics review processes

WHO’s multi-country study on women’s health and domestic violence against women : summary report of initial results on prevalence, health outcomes and women's responses

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
2005

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"Violence against women by an intimate partner is a major contributor to the ill-health of women. This study analyses data from 10 countries and sheds new light on the prevalence of violence against women in countries where few data were previously available. It also uncovers the forms and patterns of this violence across different countries and cultures, documenting the consequences of violence for women’s health. This information has important implications for prevention, care and mitigation... The high rates documented by the Study of sexual abuse experienced by girls and women are of great concern, especially in light of the HIV epidemic. Greater public awareness of this problem is needed and a strong public health response that focuses on preventing such violence from occurring in the first place...This study will help national authorities to design policies and programmes that begin to deal with the problem"

A common responsibility : the role of community-based child protection groups in protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation

SAVE THE CHILDREN UK
November 2008

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This discussion paper shares Save the Children's experience of how community-based child protection groups can be effective in preventing and responding to sexual exploitation and abuse of children. It highlights the challenges the organisation has encountered, and suggests ways in which such groups can be supported to increase their effectiveness, impact and sustainability. A range of examples are included

Advocacy toolkit : a guide to influencing decisions that improve children’s lives

COHEN, David
et al
2010

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This toolkit "provides a broadly accepted definition of advocacy and underscores UNICEF’s unique position and experience in advocacy. The heart of the Toolkit provides detailed steps, guidance and tools for developing and implementing an advocacy strategy. The Toolkit also outlines eight foundational areas that can help strengthen an office’s capacity for advocacy, and covers several crosscutting aspects of advocacy including monitoring and evaluating advocacy, managing knowledge in advocacy, managing risks in advocacy, building relationships and securing partnerships for advocacy and working with children and young people in advocacy. Special focuses examine a variety of specific topics, including human rights and equity approaches to advocacy, theories of change, and conducting advocacy in humanitarian situations"

Alternative care in emergencies (ACE) toolkit : summary guidance

FULFORD, Louise Melville
2011

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"This document provides a rapid overview of best practices in relation to interim care, including Key Principles and a Key Summary Guidance of the actions required before and during the emergency response, associated tools and where in the Extended Guidance to go for detailed information. A List of Tools located in the Zip File is included as well
This document also contains the Draft Standard Operating Procedures for Supporting Children’s Community-Based Care Placements (SOP’s). These were developed from the Haiti response by Katherine Williamson for the IRC, and provide an example set of the tasks required by those identifying, assessing and placing separated and unaccompanied children in an emergency, in accordance with the national context and required procedures. These serve as an example and can assist in the development of SOP’s to suit the context and legal and policy framework in which you are working"

ARC resource pack : user guide

ACTION FOR THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN (ARC)
2009

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"The ARC resource pack provides an essential collection of information and training material on CD-ROM, to strengthen people’s capacity: to tackle the root causes of children’s vulnerabilities; to build effective child protection systems for use in emergencies and long-term development; [and] to ensure that no activities inadvertently compromise children’s rights or safety....The pack includes the latest standards and best practices and reflects the realities of present-day emergencies, with increased emphasis on natural disasters and internal displacement.....This guide explains what is on the CD-ROM and the range of users for whom it is relevant. It will help you to decide how to build ARC materials into your work and outlines the relationship between the ARC resource pack and other materials"

Booklet 1 : understanding children’s wellbeing

SAVE THE CHILDREN
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Reference Centre for Psychosocial Support
May 2012

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"This booklet can be used as a stand-alone resource or as part of the children’s resilience programme. It has been written for parents, teachers, community workers, trainers - both those people who are directly caring for children and those who are supporting or training others in their work with children. It looks at psychosocial support and child protection, and describes how activities in the children’s resilience programme can be used both within formal school settings and out of school in all kinds of child friendly spaces"
Part of "The children’s resilience programme : psychosocial support in and out of school" by the IFRC Reference Centre for Psychosocial Support and Save the Children

Caring for child survivors of sexual abuse : guidelines for health and psychosocial service providers in humanitarian settings

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE (IRC)
2012

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These guidelines provide step-by-step guidance on how to implement the main aspects of the Caring for Child Survivors (CCS) Program Model. It is the "how-to" guide for instructing health and psychosocial field staff responding to children who have experienced sexual abuse. The guidelines include multiple tools for monitoring and evaluating the program model, such as: knowledge and skills competency assessments and case management monitoring and evaluation tools
The guidelines are part of The CCS Resource Package which is based on global research on child sexual abuse and evidence from field practice. The CCS Resource Package is a comprehensive and practical approach to help child survivors and their families recover and heal from the impacts of sexual abuse. The three main components are an in-depth literature review, CCS Program Model and the CCS Guidelines

Case management : systems and accountability|Social work in child protection projects 2009

O’LEARY, Patrick
SQUIRE, Jason
2009

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"This document focuses on implementing a case management system during the initial start-up phases of an emergency child protection project. The concepts are not exclusive to emergency projects and hold strong relevance to the inclusion of the system into existing development projects. The document provides useful guidelines and tools for improving social work"

Case management practice within Save the Children child protection programmes

MCCORMACK, Christine
November 2011

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"The purpose of this study is to look at the level of understanding and practice of case management within Save the Children’s child protection programmes. The study is divided into three parts. The first part illustrates and explains the fundamental components of a good case management system/process, drawing upon good practice in developed countries - which is also relevant and practicable to developing and emergency contexts. The second part looks at the organisation’s understanding and practice in case management, highlighting examples of promising practice (in line with recommended best practice as detailed in Part 1). The final part identifies actions that should be taken by Save the Children to improve the quality of case management work for the benefit of children, families and communities with which the organisation works"

Child disciplinary practices at home : evidence from a range of low- and middle-income countries

UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN’S FUND (UNICEF)
2010

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This report analyses findings on child discipline from 35 Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) and Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) conducted in low and middle-income countries in 2005 and 2006. Questions on child discipline were addressed to the mother (or primary caregiver) of one randomly selected child aged 2-14 years in each household. The questionnaire asked whether any member of the household had used various disciplinary practices with that child during the past month. The survey covered eight violent disciplinary practices, some of which were psychological (such as shouting and name calling) while others were physical (such as shaking and hitting). The surveys also collected information on three nonviolent forms of discipline, such as explaining why a behaviour is wrong. Finally, interviewers asked the mother (or primary caregiver) about her or his personal beliefs regarding the need for physical punishment in child rearing"

Child protection in emergencies : coordinator’s handbook

KRUEGER, Alexander
HASSAN, Tiran
2010

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This handbook is "intended for child protection specialists working in complex emergencies and disasters. It provides essential information for those professionals tasked with initiating the Child Protection co-ordination mechanism within the Humanitarian Reform process and cluster protocols. The handbook represents the collective learning and thinking of the sector on how to optimise the impact of efforts for children through careful and strategic co-ordination, and how to avoid unintended harm through fragmented poorly coordinated responses. The expectation is that whenever it is needed, children’s protection will be an active and coordinated part of preparedness, response and recovery"

Child protection rapid needs assessment : a short guide (CPRA) toolkit

CHILD PROTECTION WORKING GROUP (CPWG)
January 2011

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This practical guide provides information about the how to use the Child Protection Needs Assessment Toolkit, an inter-agency, cluster-specific rapid assessment to be used in the aftermath of a rapid-onset emergency. It is meant to provide a snapshot of urgent child protection related needs among the affected population within the immediate post-emergency context, as well as act as a stepping-stone for a more comprehensive process of assessing the impacts of the emergency

Child safeguarding in cash transfer programming : a practical tool

THOMPSON, Hannah
2012

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This practical tool enables readers to make cash transfer programming more accountable to children, by giving guidance on how to prevent and respond to child protection incidents more effectively. It covers the full programme cycle including preparation, planning, implementation and monitoring and all forms of cash transfer programming: conditional and unconditional cash grants, vouchers and cash-for-work

Ethnographic study of community-based child protection mechanisms and their linkage with the national child protection system of Sierra Leone

THE COLUMBIA GROUP FOR CHILDREN IN ADVERSITY
July 2011

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"Community-based child protection mechanisms (CBCPMs) are used widely by non-governmental organisations and communities to address and protect children from violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect. The research in this study reviews the effectiveness and sustainability of CBCPMs and aims to strengthen the link between CBCPMs and the national child protection system"

Five years on : a global update on violence against children

COWELL, Katherine
BARKER, Jo
October 2011

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"This report summarizes the state of violence against children in the five years since the release of the UN Study. It is neither comprehensive nor exhaustive, but it is illustrative of the continued pervasiveness of violence in children’s lives"

Guidelines for child-friendly spaces in emergencies

UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN’S FUND (UNICEF)
January 2011

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The purpose of this guideline is "to give practical guidance to the field teams that establish (Child Friendly Spaces) CFSs in different types of emergencies and contexts. They are also intended to guide advocacy efforts and donor practices in emergency settings where protection and well-being ought to be high priorities"

Guiding principles for the domestic implementation of a comprehensive system of protection for children associated with armed forces or armed groups

INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS (ICRC)
September 2011

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"These Guiding Principles are intended to serve the purpose of promoting and spreading knowledge of international humanitarian law and, in particular, of implementing the provisions protecting children affected by armed conflicts, especially children associated or previously associated with armed forces or armed groups. The Guiding Principles suggest a number of practical, regulatory and legal measures as means to encourage States to improve such protection. They are based mainly on binding international rules (taking into account the specific obligations of all relevant treaties and of customary law). They also refer to widely accepted instruments of a non-binding character ("soft law"). A checklist of the main obligations regarding children associated with armed forces and armed groups is provided in Annex IV"

Inter-agency guiding principles on unaccompanied and separated children

INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS (ICRC)
et al
January 2004

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This publication outlines the guiding principles which form the basis for action when children are unaccompanied, become separated from their families or other adults who they know, or are orphaned in disaster situations, armed conflicts or other crises. The guiding principles are intended primarily for national, international and non-governmental organizations and other associations concerned with separated children. They are also designed to assist governments and donors in meeting their obligations and taking funding decisions

Keeping children safe toolkit : a toolkit for child protection

KEEPING CHILDREN SAFE COALITION
2011

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This toolkit is a complete package for people working in safeguarding children across the world. It aims to support agencies at international, national and local levels to put these standards into practice. This revised toolkit for child protection includes material on children's participation in child protection. The toolkit has five components: Tool 1: Standards for child protection Tool 2: How to implement the standards Tool 3: Training for child protection Tool 4: Children's participation in child protection Tool 5: Film
Note: The original version of this document is also available to download in Arabic and Albanian

Manual for the health care of children in humanitarian emergencies

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
2008

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These guidelines are to assist in the care of children in emergencies. They are designed to serve as a reference manual for the evaluation and management of children in emergencies, and as the basis for the training of health care workers. The target audience is first level health workers who provide care to children under the age of 5 years. Physicians and health care workers with more advanced training are referred to the WHO Pocket Book of Hospital Care for Children: Guidelines for the Management of Common Illnesses with Limited Resources (2005)

Mapping of child protection M&E tools

AGER, Alastair
AKESSON, Bree
SCHUNK, Kelly
July 2010

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The availability of effective measurement tools is a clear prerequisite for the strengthening of monitoring and evaluation within the field of child protection. This report provides a structured review of a sample of 124 child protection M&E tools
Note: Annexes are available to download in separate files

Minimum standards for child protection in humanitarian action

THE CHILD PROTECTION WORKING GROUP (CPWG)
2012

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"These standards are intended for use by those working on child protection or related areas of humanitarian action...The Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action follow the structure of the Sphere standards. Each standard is accompanied by key actions, measurements (including indicators and targets), and guidance notes. Child protection in emergencies includes specific activities by child protection actors, whether national or community-based, and/or by humanitarian staff supporting local capacities. It also includes activities in other humanitarian sectors. The Minimum Standards therefore contain 26 standards: (a) 6 general standards to address child protection needs (b) 8 standards to ensure a quality child protection response (c) 4 standards to develop adequate child protection strategies and (d) 8 standards to ensure mainstreaming of child protection in other sectors"

Model IMCI handbook : integrated management of childhood illness

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN'S FUND (UNICEF)
2005

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The IMCI model handbook provides a detailed explanation of the IMCI case management guidelines. It is organized into seven main parts: overview of the IMCI process; assess and classify the sick child age 2 months up to 5 years; assess and classify the sick young infant age 1 week up to 2 months; identify treatment; treat the sick child or the sick young infant; communicate and counsel; and give follow-up care
Teaching institutions are advised to adapt the handbook in two ways: 1.to ensure that all text, charts and illustrations are consistent with nationally-adapted IMCI clinical guidelines, and 2.to ensure that its content and format corresponds to the teaching approach used by the institution

Practice standards in children’s participation

SAVE THE CHILDREN UK
January 2005

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"These practice standards are intended to guide the practice of staff working to support children’s participation. Each standard is accompanied by a set of criteria that can be used as indicators to see whether or not the standard is being met"

Protecting children from sexual exploitation and sexual violence in disaster and emergency situations

DELANEY, Stephanie
March 2006

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"This manual is about how to protect children from sexual violence and sexual exploitation, specifically in disaster and emergency situations. It is not intended to be an academic report but instead is a practical guide that we hope will be of use to people working directly in the field. The aim is to provide fundamental information to assist personnel working in emergency situations in responding to protect children, in terms of what can be done before disaster strikes (which might be called ‘mitigation’ efforts), in the immediate aftermath (the ‘response’) and in the longer term reconstruction phase (sometimes called the ‘recovery’). We have also included recommended actions and key considerations to be taken into account in the event of sexual violence or sexual exploitation"

Safeguarding children in emergencies

ROUTIER, Solveig
2012

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This resource helps organisations to develop and implement child safeguarding measures swiftly during emergencies. The full toolkit has three sections: Toolkit 1: Safeguarding standards - outlines the minimum standards for safeguarding children in emergencies Toolkit 2: How to implement the standards - provides practical guidance on how to ensure the appropriate implementation of these standards Toolkit 3: Safeguarding references - a set of resources from organisations to support child safeguarding
There is a short pocket guide to accompany the full toolkit which provides a snapshot of what is needed for child safeguarding. The guide will helps the reader understand the concerns which require a safeguarding response, how to adapt a safeguarding policy to the local context, the roles and responsibilities required to implement policies and procedures and what is good practice on recruitment, complaints handling, communicating the policy and procedures and monitoring and evaluating their effectivenessViolence against children

What are we learning about protecting children in the community? An inter-agency review of evidence on community-based child protection mechanisms|Executive summary

WESSELLS, Mike
2009

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"Drawing on findings from 60 countries and 160 documents, this executive summary: describes different types of community-based child protection groups; identifies common factors that appear to make groups effective (including community ownership, building on existing resources, children’s participation, links between formal and non-formal systems, and balancing power across groups); looks at examples of scaling up, and ensuring the sustainability both of groups and of positive outcomes for children; sets out six key challenges to maximising the effectiveness of groups; puts forward recommendations to practitioners and donors on how to strengthen community support for children’s protection and wellbeing.
This summary will be of interest to everyone who works in this area - practitioners, policy advisers and donors"
Note: The full report is on the CD-Rom

What cash transfer programming can do to protect children from violence, abuse and exploitation : review and recommendations

SAVE THE CHILDREN UK
February 2012

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"This discussion paper examines the links between cash transfers and the positive and negative outcomes for children; in particular the role cash transfers have played in protecting children from harm, exploitation, abuse and violence. The objective of this paper is to identify ways in which cash transfer activities could support the protection of children affected by emergencies"

World report on violence against children

PINHEIRO, Paulo Sergio
August 2006

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This book presents "the outcome of the first comprehensive global attempt to describe the scale of all forms of violence against children and its impact. Violence is a problem that calls for a multisectoral response. This report approaches the issue from the combined perspectives of human rights, public health and child protection. This report asserts that no violence against children is justifiable and all forms of violence are preventable. The commitments made at international and national levels and the accumulated knowledge described in this report give us the necessary tools to protect children from violence, to prevent it from happening in the first place, and to mitigate the consequences"
Note: the report is available in individual pdf files from the link above

Connecting the dots detailed guidance : victim assistance in the mine ban treaty, and the convention on cluster munitions and the convention on the rights of persons with disabilities

LEIBOWITZ, Tirza
et al
April 2011

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“"This in-depth guidance document issued in April 2011 was developed to enhance victim assistance. It illustrates the importance of accessibility, employment and education for survivors and persons with disabilities within the frameworks of the Mine Ban Treaty, the Convention on Cluster Munitions and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities"

Including disabled children in psychosocial programmes in areas affected by armed conflict

VON DER ASSEN, Nina
EUWEMA, Mathijs
CORNIELJE, Huib
2010

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"Children with disabilities are more vulnerable to violence, as well as more likely to experience psychosocial problems in situations of armed conflict than children with no disabilities. All children who live in conflict affected areas have the same rights to psychosocial support, as enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and in the case of disabled children, additionally the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. However, children with disabilities are often overlooked in psychosocial programmes. In this article, the authors examine the reasons behind this observed exclusion and suggest ways to increase the participation of children with disabilities"
Intervention, Vol 8, No 1

Introduction to child protection in emergencies : an interagency modular training package|Child protection in emergencies training and resource CD : psychosocial module

CHILD PROTECTION WORKING GROUP (CPWG)
2009

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This document is the psychosocial module of the Introduction to Child Protection in Emergencies and Interagency Modular Training Package. This module is divided into the following sections:
Part 1 presents a background to psychosocial issues including the overall impact of emergencies on psychosocial well-being, psychosocial effects of emergencies on children, and legal framework and advocacy activities.
Part 2 intervention planning presents psychosocial programming principles and priority activities, and co-ordination and sector support.
Part 3 psychosocial programming presents addressing basic services and security developing community and family supports, focused supports, and referrals to specialised services
This comprehensive document will be of particular interest to NGOs, DPOs, international and national bodies and anyone else interested in child protection and psychosocial work with children and their families
Note: The core resources for this module are the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Guidance on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings and the key interventions of the Sphere Handbook (2004) Standard for Mental and Social Aspects of Health

Water, sanitation and hygiene for schoolchildren in emergencies : a guidebook for teachers

UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN’S FUND (UNICEF)
November 2011

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"WASH in Schools aims to support the provision of safe drinking water and improved sanitation facilities, and promotes lifelong health for children and their families...This guidebook is a resource for those involved in teaching and working with children in emergency preparedness, during an emergency and throughout the recovery period. It provides simple strategies for use and adaptation with all children and families to ensure a smooth and healthy transition to a healthy and accessible learning environment...The guidebook provides the information needed to ensure that every child knows about water, sanitation and hygiene. It is not a technical book about installing taps and building toilets. Instead it provides guidance on safe WASH behaviours that help children, families and teachers stay healthy and avoid life threatening diseases. Every emergency and child-friendly space or school is different, so the suggestions and ideas provided should be adapted to suit the local situation"
Note: a book of flashcards is available as a companion to the guidebook. Although this guidebook’s pictures were created for the Africa region, flashcard sets for Asia and Latin America are also available from the website

Working with persons with disabilities in forced displacement

UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (UNHCR)
2011

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"Refugees with disabilities have specific needs and face particular forms of discrimination. As highlighted in the Executive Committee Conclusion No. 110 (LXI)-2010, it is important for UNHCR to ensure that the rights of persons with disabilities who are of concern to the Office are met without discrimination. This places an onus on offices to develop a thorough understanding of the circumstances of persons with disabilities under their care. This note provides staff with guidance on a range of issues to consider in meeting these responsibilities"