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UNICEF warns of insecurity and unhealthiness for hundreds of migrant minors in Ceuta
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Health & Science

UNICEF warns of insecurity and unhealthiness for hundreds of migrant minors in Ceuta

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • UNICEF warns of the unsafe and unsanitary conditions faced by hundreds of unaccompanied migrant minors in Ceuta since a mass entry on July 30.
  • These children are in urgent need of basic necessities like food and healthcare, wandering the streets in precarious situations.
  • Spanish authorities are working to transfer 500 migrant children to the mainland, and UNICEF is advocating for the establishment of multidisciplinary units to identify and support these vulnerable minors.

UNICEF has issued a stark warning about the "insecurity and insalubrity" affecting hundreds of unaccompanied migrant minors in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. Since a massive influx of people crossed the border from Morocco on July 30 and 31, many of whom were minors, a significant number remain in the city, living in makeshift camps or wandering the streets.

hundreds of them wander the streets alone, in unsanitary conditions and in urgent need of three meals a day and, in many cases, healthcare.

— Lara ContrerasUNICEF Spain Director describing the plight of migrant children.

Lara Contreras, Director of Influence, Programs, and Alliances at UNICEF Spain, described the situation as "urgent." She highlighted that hundreds of children are alone, living in unsanitary conditions, and in dire need of regular meals and medical attention. Spanish police have identified 2,168 minors in Ceuta who are awaiting assistance from the city's government.

it is urgent that the children who are alone are adequately identified.

— Lara ContrerasUNICEF's call for immediate action regarding identification.

The Ministry of Youth and Childhood is urgently working to transfer 500 migrant children from Ceuta to the Spanish mainland as part of a comprehensive plan to address the saturation of existing care services. UNICEF has deployed a team to Ceuta to support the establishment of a Multidisciplinary Unit for the Care of Migrant Children in Emergencies (Umaime), a proposal by the UN agency that the Ministry of Youth and Childhood will implement.

we calculate that at least three mobile Umaime units would be needed in Ceuta right now, which would speed up the identification of minors who are alone in the city.

— Lara ContrerasUNICEF's assessment of resource needs for child protection.

Contreras believes that at least three mobile Umaime units are needed in Ceuta to expedite the identification of unaccompanied minors. She stressed the necessity of sufficient resources for these units and the urgent creation of new centers, as some children have been sleeping on the streets for up to 20 days, exposing them to numerous risks. UNICEF emphasizes that following proper identification, each child's situation and vulnerabilities must be assessed to ensure their protection and the fulfillment of their rights.

new centers must be established urgently because there are minors who have been sleeping on the street for 20 days, exposed to multiple risks.

— Lara ContrerasHighlighting the critical need for shelter and safety.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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