Registration, Documentation and Tracing

Registration and documentation of separated and unaccompanied children are essential steps towards tracing and reunifying children with their families. Such separation can be highly traumatic and requires immediate action by a designated body to expedite the process. This is particularly vital when children are very young and far less able to cope without parental care or to remember essential details about their home and parents.

Registration, documentation and tracing should be done in a co-ordinated fashion throughout a particular emergency situation, with all involved agencies using the same forms in order to avoid confusion and errors and ensuring that all documentation forms are included in a central, confidential database. The affected population should be given clear guidance on the process for registration and should be supported throughout the process.

All separated children should be registered as soon as they are identified. Their basic information must be collected, photograph taken, and medical screening done. All belongings and clothing should be listed and retained with the child. Particularly for young children, the registration process must include gathering information from any adults or older children who may be able to provide relevant information. In some situations rapid action can permit immediate reunification with parents or relatives, and such action should not necessarily wait until full documentation has been completed.

Parents and caretakers who have lost children should also be able to submit tracing requests. Children and adults should be kept fully informed of the process and reunited or in contact with located family members or relatives as quickly as possible.

Tracing of family members is the next step, even if family reunification is not immediately possible. The priority is to locate parents, other family members, or relatives in the area who may be able to provide interim care for children without adequate care. Precautions should be made when sharing information for tracing purposes to ensure the child or their family members are not placed at risk.

The literature in this section includes procedural guidance and documentation forms for registering and tracing children and parents, as well as descriptions of documentation and tracing programs.

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Balkans Migration and Displacement Hub Data and Trend Analysis: Regional overview (July-September 2019)

Katarina Jovanovic - Save the Children in North West Balkans, 2019

Data and Trend Analysis (DATA) Refugees and Migrants at the Western Balkans Route Regional Overview, covering period July - September 2019, describes key trends in migrations in the region, detailing information about the number of people on the move, demography (age, sex, country of origin, etc), behavioral patterns, and routes in use - with a focus on children, particularly unaccompanied children.

Stop the War on Children: Protecting Children in 21st Century Conflict

George Graham, Mariam Kirollos, Gunvor Knag Fylkesnes, Keyan Salarkia and Nikki Wong - Save the Children, 2019

This report from Save the Children provides an overview of the impacts of armed conflict on children, the efforts that Save the Children and others are making to address the needs of children affected by armed conflict, and a series of recommendations for governments and others.

Reception of Children on the Move in South Africa

Anisa Mahmoudi & Tshegofatso Tracy Mothapo - Kids Empowerment , 01 Nov 2018

This report from Kids Empowerment reviews the reception of children on the move in South Africa.

Country Care Review: Philippines

Better Care Network , 16 Oct 2018

This country care review includes the care related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Hannah Has a New Job

The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action, 27 Jul 2018

This short video was designed for newly hired child protection in humanitarian action (CPHA) staff, as well as child protection staff who want to learn more about working in emergency settings - and the CPMS in particular.

Country Care Review: Russian Federation

Better Care Network, 03 Jul 2018

This country care review includes the care related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Using a population-based survey approach to estimate child separation after a natural disaster: findings from post-Hurricane Haiti

Lindsay Stark, Matthew MacFarlane, Beth L Rubenstein, Gary Yu, Celina Jensen, Katharine Williamson - BMJ Global Health, 17 May 2018

This study explores findings of a population-based approach to measure the prevalence of unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) during the Hurricane Matthew aftermath in Haiti.

Measuring movement into residential care institutions in Haiti after Hurricane Matthew: A pilot study

Celina Jensen, Beth L. Rubenstein, Matthew MacFarlane, Lindsay Stark - Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action, 16 Apr 2018

The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of evaluating movement of children into residential care following an emergency.

Better Protection through Localisation

Child Protection Area of Responsibility, Protection and Education Clusters, 01 Nov 2017

This technical note presents a conceptual framework for localisation in protection and education coordination. It includes a description of the role of coordinators and coordination groups in localization and examples of how localization can be integrated in the humanitarian program cycle.

A Practice Handbook: For family tracing and reunification in emergencies

Save the Children International, 12 Oct 2017

This handbook consolidates learning garnered from Save the Children's experience of setting up, managing and investing in the Family Tracing and Reunification (FTR) programme in South Sudan in order to contribute to the strengthening of Save the Children’s approach to FTR in sudden onset of emergencies where Child Protection in Emergencies (CPiE) programmes need to respond to large scale family separations.