Plan Europe is a regional network within Plan International which links 11 European offices of Plan and our 50 programme countries around the world with the Plan EU Office in Brussels. Plan has the active support of 700,000 individual donors in EU member states through child sponsorship. Plan Europe strives to ensure that the promotion and protection of the rights of the child is a priority for the EU’s external action in policy and practice.
The European Union (EU) is one of the world’s largest and most important development and humanitarian actors, and influencing its policies, programmes and diplomatic actions has the potential to positively affect the lives of hundreds of millions of children in developing countries.
We therefore aim to influence EU external action in favour of children’s rights and equality for girls. If we are to achieve our ambitions and deliver the results we seek for children, business as usual approaches will not work. We will push the EU to do more, and do it better, to ensure that all children enjoy their rights and no one is left behind.
Children's rights, Human Rights, European Union, EU External Action, Education, Gender equality, Development, Humanitarian Aid, Sustainable Development Goals, and Agenda 2030
Twenty-four hours after the missile attack on #Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in #Kyiv, Plan International Ukraine staff Lina Palij and Oksana Awad went to see the ongoing rescue efforts. Hundreds of volunteers were still on site.
Following Monday’s attack Plan International’s partners Words Help; Tvoya Opora and Partnership for Every Child (P4EC) were among the organisations that rushed to the scene to provide medical assistance, including to children with disabilities and assist with emergency mental health support to children and their caregivers.
The death toll from Monday’s attacks across Kyiv currently stands at 34, including 4 children. Over 120 people have been injured.
Civilians, especially children, must be protected and not targeted. Plan International demands an immediate and unequivocal end to all grave violations against children in conflict and for international humanitarian law #IHL to be respected in the ongoing war in #Ukraine, especially relating to the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure such as hospitals. A maternity clinic in Kyiv was also damaged hours after the strike on the children’s hospital.
Joint statement: Spike in violence feared for children in #Haiti as international security forces deploy, unless urgent action is taken.
Together with Save the Children International and World Vision, we are urgently calling on the UN-backed Multinational Security Support mission (MSS) to prioritise children’s rights and safety by ensuring that the deploying forces have dedicated child protection expertise in place and child safeguarding training ahead of their deployment. We also call on the forces to be trained on the prevention of gender-based violence, sexual exploitation and abuse to ensure greater protection for girls and women.
Full statement: https://lnkd.in/etDbzvZ5
In 2024, the number of Haitians requiring urgent humanitarian assistance has risen to 5.5 million, nearly half the population. During a panel hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Plan International Haiti Director shared his insights about the devastating impact of the crisis on children and young people.
Panel discussion available here: https://lnkd.in/eQyvP_fEWorld Vision EU RepresentationSave the Children Europe
Plan International statement following the IPC report on hunger in #Sudan.
Responding to the UN-backed IPC’s latest report, Mohammed Qazilbash, Country Director for Plan International Sudan said: “Today’s IPC report has confirmed what we have feared for months now – that famine is imminent in multiple areas of Sudan. Children are already dying of starvation, and we are now in a race against time to avert a full-blown famine."
At #EHF2024, Baraa had called on the international community to not forget the children of Sudan. Let's make sure we don't. We call on the EU to push for a scale up in humanitarian, diplomatic and political attention.
Full statement: https://lnkd.in/eeeYs7yV
This week, as the world marks World Refugee Day with the greatest number of people displaced from their homes than ever before, Plan International joined the Council of the European Union's Working Party on Humanitarian Aid and Food Aid (known as COHAFA). During a discussion about the serious humanitarian situation in El Salvador and the region, Plan International El Salvador shared their focused response to support the growing numbers of people on the move, as well as how the EU and the international community must ramp up its support to address the needs of those most affected, particularly women, children and young people.
Across the world today, millions rely on humanitarian aid and international solidarity for support and even survival. Yet, some of these crises are neglected, with alarmingly low levels of both donor and media attention. The situation in El Salvador is one such overlooked crisis, despite the reality that millions in the region are forced to move each year as a result of armed violence, climate shocks, food insecurity and political instability.
Women and girls face particular threats, with a Plan International study revealing that one in five adolescent girls in Central America cited sexual and gender-based violence as a reason to flee their homes. In El Salvador, the situation is equally grim. More than 60% of the population are living in gang-controlled areas and over 10,000 children are involved in gang activities. However, despite these severe needs, the country's Humanitarian Response Plan was only 30% funded in 2023.
Given this stark situation, Plan International El Salvador repeated calls to better support the region, and shared its unique programmatic model to support people on the move, with a particular focus on supporting children and their specific needs at different moments of their journey. This model, uses a comprehensive approach across countries, focusing on child protection, education, livelihoods, and sexual and reproductive health.
Plan colleagues finished by recommending that the EU and its Member States:
- Increase attention on El Salvador and the region;
- Urgently address the severe funding gap;
- Strengthen protection services, including around gender-based violence and child protection;
- Invest in multi-sectoral integrated approaches, including in education, health and livelihoods;
- Invest in food security;
- Meaningfully support youth-led initiatives and allowing young people to co-design solutions.
Thank you to the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024 for the invitation and for pushing forward this much needed discussion on neglected crises across their Presidency.
Video credit: VOICE EU. Full video available here: https://lnkd.in/eWdPdPAW#WorldRefugeeDay#WorldRefugeeDay2024
"My advice to young people? Your voices matter. You belong. It is not just good to be invited to the decision-making table, you have the right to be there."
In Ukraine, there is an increased need to bring together short-term humanitarian aid and long-term development efforts to respond to the needs of millions of people.
Young people have a necessary role in this and, according to Plan International consultations, they are extremely eager to be actively involved in designing solutions.
On the latest Capacity4dev podcast episode, Stefan Schleuning (EU Delegation in Ukraine), and Sven Coppens (Plan International East and Central Europe) discuss how to best support them.
https://lnkd.in/g4UyDUmV
Job opportunity: the Plan International EU Office is looking for two new colleagues to join our team in Brussels.
Are you committed to children's rights and gender equality? Do you have experience in EU development or humanitarian funding? Then, this might be the right opportunity for you.
More information: https://lnkd.in/eUmPPaBY
Open letter by 14 organisations urging the European Commission to rethink its proposed shift to a transactional approach in development cooperation.
This approach could abandon vulnerable communities in fragile or crisis-affected contexts, leading to devastating consequences for those most at risk and undermining the EU’s global relevance in an increasingly fragile world.
The European Commission must urgently reconsider this pivot towards a flawed design and uphold its commitments to break the cycle of growing humanitarian needs globally.
Letter available here: https://lnkd.in/dRvSNbN3
One week ago, the Syria Donor Conference (#SyriaConf2024) brought together the EU, EU Member States, country representatives from the region, donors and international organisations.
The Conference received €7.5B in pledges (€5B in grants and €2.5B in loans). The EU pledged €2.12B, while the figure for the EU and EU Member States combined amounts to almost €6B. We welcome these commitments and we acknowledge that the EU and its Member States remain global leaders in humanitarian funding. This is a much-needed role aligned with the increasing needs globally, and with the values and of the EU.
However, this is simply not enough. According to the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres “almost $9B is required to respond to this humanitarian disaster inside Syria and in the region." A funding gap means the perpetuation of devastating realities for millions. The EU needs to exert its influence and work with other donors so that the international community decisively steps up its efforts to relieve suffering.
Moreover, the separation of the civil society Day of Dialogue (30/04) and the Ministerial Meeting (27/05) prevented any substantial interaction between Syrian and international civil society and decision-makers. Although civil society conclusions were communicated to the Ministerial Meeting, the lack of direct engagement between humanitarians and donors represented a huge, missed opportunity for genuine dialogue.
Full assessment: https://lnkd.in/e92Xk5e7
Fighting hunger means more than providing food. It means promoting peace, accountability and justice. It means safeguarding children and girls’ specific needs and preventing the loss of millions of lives.
This year, armed conflicts and military aggression have been the primary causes of hunger crises. Children in Gaza, in Sudan and in other areas of the world, are the prime casualties of these devastating realities.
The EU must exert all its influence towards a future where no child goes to bed hungry.
On this World Hunger Day, we call on the EU to fight starvation and malnutrition, their root causes, as well as the environment that enables such catastrophic realities to exist. Among others, the EU must continue pushing for increased accountability, justice and political costs for those who use starvation as a weapon of war, as well as guaranteed and unfettered humanitarian access.
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Blogpost by Salomé Hindriks, Plan International EU Office, on hunger crises and the EU’s crucial role in addressing them: https://lnkd.in/eCjpsK_M
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Photo credit: Taawon Welfare Association, 2024.
#WHD2024#WorldHungerDay
