Combating
Human Trafficking
Romania
October 2003 – June 2004
 Increasing
poverty and unemployment in Romania have led to rising child
labor in both urban and rural areas. Many of these children
are vulnerable to human trafficking and the use of children
for prostitution and sexual exploitation. Some studies say
that children under 18 may comprise 10-30% of sex workers
in Romania.
To address these problems, BEPS launched a pilot
project using education to combat child prostitution and
trafficking
in northeastern Romania. The project targeted a trafficking
route near neighboring Moldova and Ukraine, which passes
through two of the most impoverished counties of the country.
The project worked to educate the general public, parents,
educators, and youth about the risks of trafficking. It also
provided youth in the target areas, especially high school
students, institutionalized children, and trafficking victims,
with the skills and knowledge necessary to find income-producing
employment in their home region. The project strengthened
the organizations that provide these services to increase
their opportunities for receiving follow-on funding to continue
the work. Another outcome of the project is the establishment
of a system for identification and monitoring of at-risk
youth, using county intersectoral teams. This data will contribute
to the improvement of services for at-risk children or victims,
provided through county protection teams in the target area.
This
pilot project contributed to the USAID goal of implementing
a child labor pilot project in each region of the globe as
a means of field testing various methods of using education
to combat child labor.
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