Lisa Long

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CIES 2008
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• I wish I could turn into a scorpion so that I
  could run up to the soldiers and steal their
  guns, and they would never know who I was."
• Said by Huda, four-year old girl, Ramallah,
  Palestine

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Presentation Outline

• What happens to young children and how is their
  development affected in emergency settings?
• What helps in such settings - importance of Early
  Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) programs in
  emergencies
• How the ECCD in Emergencies Working Group (EEWG)
  is responding

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References

• Early childhood care and education in emergency
  situations by Hania Kamel (Background paper for
  UNESCO Education for All Global Monitoring Report
  2007 Strong foundations early childhood care and
  education)
• International Donor Agencies Guidelines for
  Responding to Children in Emergencies by Nina
  Prabhu (Working Draft)
• Young Children Cant Wait - Early Childhood Care
  for Development in Emergencies by Chloe OGara,
  Lisa Long and Carl Triplehorn (Working Draft)

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What happens to young children and how is their
development affected in emergency settings?

• Normal responses to abnormal events
• withdraw from contact
• stop playing and laughing
• become obsessed with violent war games
• dwell on feelings of guilt
• fantasies of revenge
• continual pre-occupation with their role and feel
  responsible for past events
• Aggressiveness
• eating disturbances
• learning problems
• physical ailments

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What happens to young children and how is their
development affected in emergency settings?

• Psychological distress might also manifest itself
  in
• flashbacks of stress events
• Withdrawal
• inability to concentrate
• reverting to younger behaviors such as
  thumb-sucking or bedwetting
• expressing symptoms of illness such as headaches,
  vomiting or fever
• toddlers - regressing behavior, losing appetite,
  becoming mute, clinging, being irritated, and
  developing an exaggerated startle response
• Should not be dismissed as naughtiness.

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What happens to young children and how is their
development affected in emergency settings?

• Not all children respond in the same way -each
  child is unique
• Childrens vulnerabilities influenced by
• Age
• Gender
• Personality
• ethnic group or tribe
• being a member of a rural or urban community
• status as an income earner for the family

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What happens to young children and how is their
development affected in emergency settings?

• traditional role and position a child has in
  society (especially if it has been radically
  altered)
• being internally displaced, moving to a refugee
  camp, or remaining in ones damaged or war-torn
  community
• perception of the traumatic event
• political and military tools traumatizing the
  child

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What happens to young children and how is their
development affected in emergency settings?

• Preschool children
• may view illness, loss, and death as punishment
  for wrongdoing.
• Very sensitive and able to recognize that people
  around them are sad or frightened.
• Parental reactions are important predictors of
  the impact of trauma.
• Infants and younger children are more dependent
  on the resourcefulness of elder siblings and
  adults for their care and safety.

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What happens to young children and how is their
development affected in emergency settings?

• Young children absorb the culture, morals and
  politics of the conflict through the media and
  through socialization at home and in the
  community.
• Case in Northern Ireland
• Children living in areas of sectarian violence,
  3-6 year olds showed a strong tendency towards
  symbols associated with their community
• By 7 and 8 these same children aware of
  differences between Protestant and Irish Catholic
  communities, and developed strong attitudes and
  prejudices towards the other community

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What happens to young children and how is their
development affected in emergency settings?

• Primary casualty of emergencies from perspective
  of the young child - Losing trust in adults as a
  result of experiencing emergencies
• Primary caregiver, often the mother, can be so
  affected by the material impact that she is
  unable to meet the childs basic needs including
  those of food, shelter, protection.
• Vital to rebuild a childs belief that he/she can
  trust and rely on others to provide love, food
  and shelter
• Presence of at least one familiar person who
  provides continuity is essential, especially for
  young children, as they find it very difficult to
  trust and communicate with someone unfamiliar.

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Issues with Research

• Few studies have been conducted on younger
  children, under six years of age, (perhaps due to
  ethical and methodological challenges).
• Research generally asks adults to explain and
  interpret childrens feelings and reactions
  during an emergency.
• adults may not have actually asked children or
  carefully observed their feelings and
  experiences, or may assume children have the same
  preoccupations as adults.
• Researchers may not be skilled in use and
  interpretation of child friendly and projective
  methods
• Researchers may have a set list of traumatic
  responses which miss or pre-determine the way a
  child will answer a question about their stress
  level and symptoms

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What happens to young children and how is their
development affected in emergency settings?

• Invisibility of young children in relief
  efforts - relief workers lacking specific child
  health or child development expertise, and
  unaware of the essential developmental and
  psychosocial needs of young children.

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What helps in such settings?

• Protective factors for children
• capacity to recognize and avoid dangers
• ability to seek help and support from adults for
  caretaking activities
• capacity to manage anxiety
• ability to devote him/herself to a cause and to
  find meaning in the experience (community service
  learning with youth)
• Degree of social, community, and family
  cohesiveness and support systems
• Shared values and beliefs systems with children
  and those around them.

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What helps in such settings - importance of Early
Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) programs in
emergencies

• Agency Preparedness
• Know and recognize early warning systems.
• Be in a state of alert if internal or
  cross-border disaster is likely
• Strive to establish effective, early warning
  systems or communication strategies in all areas
  where emergencies are likely to occur so
  preparation and preventative action can take
  place.

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What helps in such settings - importance of Early
Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) programs in
emergencies

• Agency and Community Preparedness
• In regions of constant threat or with adequate
  preparation time, work with communities in the
  advance preparation and readiness for potential
  natural disasters.
• Mapping of child care centers
• Preparing children for emergency
• Assessing local and national government for
  systems in place to support children and families
  in emergencies

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What helps in such settings - importance of Early
Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) programs in
emergencies

• Beginning with an assessment of the situation
  before initiating early childhood activities.

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What helps in such settings - importance of Early
Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) programs in
emergencies

• Activities typically start in conjunction with
  other programs such as health and nutrition,
  community development and womens programs
• Begin with basic levels of care, safe spaces, and
  organized play
• Important to seek ways from the beginning, with
  local partners, of how more will be done after
  acute phase (with broader range of stimulation
  and education).
• Provide options for more structured play and
  learning activities, as partnerships are created
  with parents, local organizations and local
  authorities.

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IASC Minimum Responses

• Recommended by the Inter Agency Standing
  Committee's Task Force on Mental Health and
  Psychosocial Support (2007) in Action Sheet 5.4
• "Facilitate support for young children (0-8
  years) and their caregivers
• Keep children with their mothers, fathers, family
  or other familiar care-givers.
• Prevent separation (b) Reunify children and
  parents (c) Facilitate alternative care
  arrangements.
• Promote the continuation of breastfeeding.
• Facilitate age and culturally appropriate play,
  nurturing care and social support which gives
  children a sense of routine and participation in
  normalizing activities.
• Care for care-givers by organizing meetings at
  which care-givers can discuss past, present and
  future share problem-solving and support one
  another in caring effectively for their children.

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What helps in such settings - importance of Early
Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) programs in
emergencies

• Programs may have two phases
• Phase One focuses on refugees and displaced
  children in collective centres with aim of
  providing
• a normalizing environment for children between
  the ages of 3-7
• a respite for parents, potentially reducing
  further conflict
• strengthening childrens coping mechanisms
• providing a platform where children are actively
  engaged in solving their own problems with
  others.

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• 2. In phase two program shifts away from
  immediate emergency and begins building early
  childhood capacity of the larger settled
  populations. Pedagogy, awareness of childrens
  needs and rights, and sustainability as new areas
  of focus.

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What helps in such settings - importance of Early
Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) programs in
emergencies

• In Chronic Emergencies creative, alternative ways
  to bring children together safely
• In Palestine, Save the Children supported
  Family Fun Days and Treasure Boxes for
  children. During family fun days mothers,
  children and community caregivers created
  materials to be placed in childrens treasure
  boxes for use at home during curfew times when
  children could not leave the house. Neighbours
  living next door could also come and play with
  the treasure boxes, creating a time and space at
  home for early childhood activities to continue,
  even under emergency conditions.

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How the ECCD in Emergencies Working Group (EEWG)
is responding

• ECCD in Emergencies Working Group (EEWG) formed
  in 2007 to raise awareness about and meet the
  critical needs of young children in the most
  difficult humanitarian contexts.
• Made up of representatives from agencies acting
  in emergencies and ECCD, expert consultants and
  others interested in supporting ECCD in
  Emergencies. Links with peace building and young
  children.

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Recommendations for EEWG

• Develop an international set of minimal standards
  on ECCD in Emergencies A common framework for
  all actors

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2. Address Gaps in Guidelines and Operational
Tools

• Newborns and Infants
• A Community and Process Oriented Resilience
  Approach
• Sherry Bartletts Making Space for Children
  Planning for post-disaster reconstruction with
  children and their families and power point
• A simplified tool for Field Workers

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3. Interagency collaboration

• Ensure interagency buy-in and ownership from
  participating members.
• Develop a clear operational mandate for the
  working group and for inter-agency collaboration.

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4. An Advocacy strategy for ECCD in Emergency
Situations

• Disaggregate support for ECCD from overall
  education emergency education support
• Ensure ECCD emergency plans are part of National
  Plans of Action.
• Define child care as a critical service in
  Emergency response
• Lobby for the use of media in pre-emergency
  preparedness in disaster prone areas

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4. An Advocacy strategy for ECCD in Emergency
Situations

• Identify key donors who are willing to support
  ECCD programming from the acute phase through
  long-term development
• Foster and encourage collaboration with
  pediatricians and broader communities who may be
  interested in impact of emergencies on young
  children and on long term development of children
  and communities (e.g. Health sector, economic
  development sector, nutrition, maternal and child
  health, education, psychosocial sectors)

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5. Research Needs

• How does crisis psychologically and
  developmentally affect younger children,
  especially in developing countries?
• How do non-Western models represent and resolve
  trauma in young children?
• What is the optimal structure and sequencing of
  activities to improve a childs well-being at
  different ages and at different stages of trauma
  and recovery?
• How can children be supported to be competent
  survivors rather than passive victims?

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Research Needs

• How do children negotiate their own ways of daily
  living, coping, and developing in emergency
  situations?
• How do children act to protect and support their
  older family members, including parents, who may
  be too despondent to assume their usual roles as
  chief caregivers?
• What are the long term implications of adult
  responsibilities on the shoulders of very young
  children?
• Systematic research on the cost and financing of
  ECCD in unstable situations and examination of
  funding options for ECCD in emergencies.

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EEWG specific tasks for 2008

• Regroup with EEWG Members (newsletter, phone
  conference, etc)
• Webpage (resources, tools and expertise on ECCD
  in Emergencies)
• CG Annual Consultation 2008 Day 1 ECCD in
  Emergencies Theme
• INEE EEWG Task Team
• Revise the INEE Good Practice Guide for Early
  Childhood Development and feed into the revision
  process of the INEE Minimum Standards
• Participate in developing inter-agency guidelines
  on Child Friendly Spaces/Emergency Education
  Spaces.
• Develop proposal writing guidelines including
  draft budget line items.
• ECD in Emergencies papers (graduate studies and
  EEWG Position paper)

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EEWG specific tasks for 2008

• Mapping of ECCD in Emergencies with Education
  Cluster Capacity Mapping process as basis for
  developing an Early Childhood Capacity Matrix.
  Matrix will detail emergency actors, mandates,
  and strengths and serve as reference for who is
  doing what, where, gaps and opportunities.
• 2009 Coordinators Notebook with ECCD in
  Emergencies Theme
• EEWG Communication Materials (brochure, advocacy
  pieces, messages, etc)

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For more information or to join the EEWG

• Visit the EEWG webpage within the CG website at
  http//www.ecdgroup.com
• Contact Lisa Long, Nurper Ulkuer or Louise
  Zimanyi
• llong_at_savechildren.org

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Thank you