A/HRC/33/53 ensuring that States guarantee all the fundamental rights of unaccompanied migrant children. 91. Civil society intervenes in the area of prevention and in responding to the abuse, neglect, violence and exploitation of children; they make sure that children have legal documentation and that durable solutions to the specific needs of children are met, taking into primary consideration the best interest of the child. Many organizations provide educational and medical assistance, psychosocial support, food, shelter, water and sanitation. Some NGOs have even brought legal actions in the case of severe violations committed inside government agencies. 92. There are international NGOs and global networks like Casa Alianza and ECPAT International that promote training programmes for staff and experts in the police, social workers and youth welfare authorities on measures to protect child refugees from trafficking and sexual exploitation and on general human rights protection. 93. Civil society has significant experience in communication and raising awareness of the need to respect the human rights of migrant children. Thus, civil society organizations have tried to reach institutions, social organizations, children, the media and the general public in order to convey their views, generate structural changes and influence public policies. 94. NGOs have demonstrated a far better level of coordination and cooperation than States on migration issues. As an example, Caritas works with governmental and international organizations for the protection of children. Caritas partners include national ministries, UNICEF, IOM and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. In Guatemala, there is a group coordinating civil society action on migration, in the framework of which organizations such as Casa Alianza have participated in the construction of proposed policies and in advocacy before the commission for migrants of Congress. Moreover, the Regional Network of Civil Organizations for Migration represents civil society organizations and individuals from 11 countries in Latin America at global forums. 95. In Africa, the civil society organization Terre des Hommes plays the role of an umbrella body for all NGOs dealing with children’s rights in Zimbabwe. It coordinates activities and advises the Government on how to protect the rights of migrant children. It monitors and evaluates every activity through periodic reports on the state of children’s rights in Zimbabwe, which are then sent to the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review of the United Nations, the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and the Southern African Development Community.60 96. Thanks to the useful cooperation among all relevant stakeholders operating in the centres financed with European funds, many families have been reunified. For instance, in Italy a father living in France was reunified with his children, who had no documents proving their identity; the reunification was made possible by a DNA test. 97. The Federal Association for Unaccompanied Minor Refugees has been working to improve the legal situation of children who arrive in Germany without the support of a guardian through a project to enhance the social integration of young refugees. Numerous obstacles often hinder integration, yet many adolescents succeed in actively leading a socially committed life and fulfilling their personal goals.61 60 61 Ibid. ECPAT International, Germany. 17

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