IOM Egypt has presented on the irregular migration of children from Egypt at the Third Arab Parliamentarians Conference on Arab Childhood at the League of Arab States in Cairo.

The event was attended by officials from 22 countries and representatives from international agencies. It provided an overview of the socio-economic drivers of the irregular migration of children and their vulnerabilities during migration. It also discussed the changing modus operandi and characteristics of smuggling networks operating from Egypt.

“Smugglers now use debt bondage arrangements to make children repay the costs of smuggling services,” said IOM Programme Officer Nils Feller. “Although children are not coerced into working upon arrival in Europe, they are victims of trafficking under international law.”

In order to safeguard the rights of unaccompanied migrant children, IOM advocates for the development of multidisciplinary policies. It supports efforts by Egyptian government agencies to prevent irregular child migration, to protect their rights and address their needs, and it is working to enhance national capacities for the prosecution of smugglers.

Irregular child migration is a growing phenomenon, with over one in five migrants arriving in Europe being children. The percentage of children among irregular Egyptian migrants arriving in Europe has been the highest of any country since 2011.

A full assessment of the irregular migration of Egyptian children and recommendations for policy responses can be found in IOM’s new report: “Egyptian Unaccompanied Migrant Children: A Case Study on Irregular Migration.”

The report can be downloaded from: https://publications.iom.int/books/egyptian-unaccompanied-migrant-childr...