Stakeholder perceptions of gaps and solutions in addressing child trafficking

• Published in: Children and youth services review 2024-03, Vol.158, p.107475, Article 107475
• Main Authors: Okech, David, Cody, Anna M., Callands, Tamora A., Afroz, Fahmida, Balch, Alex, Bolton, Claire, Fofanah, Umaru, Aletraris, Lydia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Child trafficking; Ecological model; Program and service gaps; Qualitative; Sierra Leone; Survivor-centered
• ISSN: 0190-7409; 1873-7765
• DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2024.107475

•Stakeholders have mobilized to address child trafficking across the globe through policy and service interventions.•This community-based participatory research approach examines how key stakeholders perceive existing gaps in policies and programs aimed at countering child trafficking.•Gaps included access to and availability of local programs and services for families as well as inadequate funding for anti-trafficking service providers.•An ecological approach is critical in responding to child trafficking and potential conflicts between cultural norms and national policies. Governments, researchers, and community-based organizations have mobilized to develop interventions and programs addressing child trafficking, resulting in large amounts of financial resources allocated to awareness-raising campaigns, crisis services for survivors, and increasing judicial responses to trafficking. Low-resource and low-income countries face the dual challenge of addressing child trafficking within an environment where extreme poverty is pervasive and customary norms might conflict with national anti-trafficking policies. The purpose of this study is to understand challenges faced in addressing child trafficking and identify interventions that are community-driven and contextually relevant. The study used a qualitative community-based participatory research approach by collaborating with local researchers, government, and NGOs to examine how key stakeholders perceive existing gaps in policies and programs aimed at countering child trafficking in Sierra Leone. Six gaps in policies and services were identified by stakeholders: access to and availability of local programs and services for families; access to and affordability of schooling and vocational training in local communities; lack of policy implementation and enforcement of existing laws, especially at the local level; inadequate funding for anti-trafficking service providers; lack of community support for survivors of trafficking, and a lack of coordinated and consistent community response. In a demonstration of the trauma-informed and survivor-centered study design, participants also suggested possible ways to bridge these gaps. An ecological approach is critical in designing policies and programs responsive to the complex problem of child trafficking within an environment of low resources and potential conflicts between cultural norms and national policies. Practitioners in such contexts must be culturally-compet