Mapping Children on the Move within Africa CHAPTER 7 FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Based on the foregoing, this study clusters the recommendation around the following issues: 7.1 Policy and other measures by Member States • Transit and destination countries should put in place legislative and policy measures that protect and promote the human rights of the children on the move. For instance, border control measures should not include detention of children and children on the move should not subjected to discrimination or torture. Child protection services and social and economic goods such as food, health services including sexual and reproductive rights and education in countries of transit and destination should be availed to children on the move. • Pursuant to the principle of non-refoulement, transit and destination countries should ensure that children are not returned or taken to a country where their rights may be violated. Moreover, children on the move should not be returned or removed from a transit or destination country as a punitive measure. • Similarly, countries should consider putting in place adequate measures to support returnees, particularly with respect to family tracing and reunification, family mediation, resettling grants, skills development. • States of origin, transit and destination should put in place transnational measures of child welfare agencies to ensure that rights of children are protected and to guarantee that administrative hiccups or challenges due to differences in approach to immigration processes do not lead to violation of children on the move. Greater coordination for instance through the RECs could be considered (see next section). • States of origin, transit and destination should strengthen measures to combat smuggling and trafficking particularly in children. For instance, police, immigration officials and other law enforcement agencies in states of origin, transit and destination should share information in respect to trafficking of children, routes used for trafficking etc. This will ensure safe and legal channels for children to move within Africa and to seek refuge and shelter where necessary. In this respect, a reevalution of the Ouagadougou Plan of Action and a coordinated effort with similar efforts currently taking place at the REC level should be considered. • Transit and destination states should ensure that unaccompanied children are provided with foster care or supervised independent living and integration into the community. Most importantly, states should ensure that children are not separated from parents and where separation has taken place, children should be reunited with their families or relatives. 91