Migrations, over 20,000 refugee girls, boys, adolescents and young refugees reached in 2022 with the program in Italy

ROME – In 2022, around 105,000 refugees and migrants arrived in Italy via the central Mediterranean route, including over 13,300 unaccompanied foreign minors. Instead, it is estimated that over 8,000 people have reached the country through the northeastern border, mostly from conflict zones in the Middle East and South Asia. Added to these numbers are the over 170,000 Ukrainian refugees who arrived in Italy starting in February, fleeing the war, including around 92,000 women and around 50,000 girls, boys and adolescents.

The data released. According to the data of the new Program Annual Report 2022 in support of migrant and refugee girls, boys and adolescents in Italy, theUNICEF reached over 20,000 minors and young migrants and refugees last year with face-to-face interventions, including:

– 14,000 minors with protection interventions (actions to protect rights and better standards of reception and protection), including 5,000 from Ukraine;
– 279 adolescents placed in foster care and/or supported by mentors; plus 50 Ukrainian households.
– 2,000 minors had access to language, digital and transversal skills development programmes, 500 of them fleeing the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
– 2,200 survivors of gender-based violence were reached through legal and psychosocial support.
– 10,700 people reached through the Blue Dots set up in response to the Ukrainian emergency, including over 3,000 minors and around 7,000 women;

Among the online actions. Over 200,000 people – including refugee communities and host communities – were reached, on average, with online information, including through the digital platform U-Report on the Move. More than 2,000 operators have been trained on child protection, prevention and response to gender-based violence. In continuity with previous years, in 2022 theUNICEF has responded to the challenges related to the need for protection of girls and adolescents, through legal support, health, mental health support and psychosocial support in face-to-face and online mode. Systems based on community support such as foster care, the model of mentoring – training methodology and job orientation which is based on the relationship between a person with more experience and one with less experience – and the system of voluntary tutors.

The risks of widespread acceptance. Among the activities also the strengthening of the offer and accessibility of prevention and response services to gender-based violence for refugee and migrant women and girls and the establishment of a community of practices to strengthen action. Skills development programs have also been promoted for the socio-economic inclusion of minors with background migration, strengthened the language skills of newly arrived students, promoted opportunities for participation and listening. In response to the Ukraine crisis, UNICEF has also activated two Blue Dot in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, at the border crossings of Fernetti (Trieste) and Tarvisio (Udine). The two support centers for minors, women, families and people with specific needs remained active throughout 2022, providing information and support, referrals to local services. UNICEF has also supported, together with theUNHCRthe Department of Civil protection for the mitigation of the risk of gender-based violence and the protection of minors from the risk of exploitation and abuse in the so-called “widespread reception”.