Missing Child Alert (MCA) is a cross border project which responds to the grave issue of child trafficking and its close link with intrinsic issue of ‘missing and trafficked children’ in South Asia. The project is led by Plan India, Plan International Bangladesh and Plan International Nepal in coordination with South Asia Initiative to End Violence against Children (SAIEVAC). MCA Phase-I was carried out from Jul’ 12 to Mar’ 17 to prevent and respond to child trafficking within and between Bangladesh, India and Nepal. The project aimed to improve cooperation between families, communities, law enforcement, governments and service providers to strengthen the national and regional system that helps to reduce the number of missing and trafficking cases and improve the effectiveness and quality of the action of all state and non-state actors. SAIEVAC, an apex body of SAARC, responsible for development in South Asia, has been an important regional partner during Phase-I and the bridge year (2017-18). On the other side, Dnet, a social enterprise based in Bangladesh, closely worked with Plan International in developing the Repatriation Information Management System (RIMS), the cross border technology alert mechanism.
Key Activities (2017-18)
- Awareness on prevention and protection on missing and anti-human trafficking
- Identify 100 vulnerable Panchayats from 4 cross border districts in India connected to Bangladesh and Nepal
- Formation and strengthening the Community Vigilance Group (CVG) as preventing and protection mechanism
- Closely working with selected Anti-Human Trafficking Units
- Capacity building of police personnel at local police stations
- Lobby and advocacy with law enforcement agencies/Community Welfare Committees and other government stakeholders at state and national level
- Rescue and repatriate cross border victims from India to Bangladesh and Nepal through RIMS by contacting identified shelter homes
