Down to Zero
Millions of children worldwide are sexually exploited, both online and offline.
And this number continues to grow. The Down to Zero Alliance is stepping up the fight against child sexual exploitation. We are committed to the protection of children and the prevention of sexual exploitation in twelve countries in Asia and Latin America.
Terre des Hommes Netherlands (lead), Child Rights Coalition Asia (CRC Asia), Conexión, Defence for Children – Ecpat, Free A Girl and Plan International work together in the Down to Zero Alliance with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands to address the sexual exploitation of children.
SUFASEC
Step Up the Fight Against Sexual Exploitation of Children
Down to Zero implements the programme Step Up the Fight Against Sexual Exploitation of Children (SUFASEC), that enables children and young people to defend their own rights, support communities to become safer and protective of their children against sexual exploitation, and helps governments to improve and implement related policies, laws and regulations. The Alliance also collaborates with the private sector, for example in the tourist industry.
Under the SUFASEC programme, two initiatives specifically focus on child and youth participation: Youth Voices for Change and the VOICE project.
Youth Voices for Change
Youth Voices for Change is an initiative of the Down To Zero Alliance that seeks to prevent the sexual exploitation of children and youth by amplifying the voices of young leaders for change in Latin America and Asia.
The goal is to position young leaders as central agents of change, to improve child protection systems in Asia and Latin America through lobby & advocacy and capacity building from the local, regional, national and cross-border level to international level.
Youth Voice for Change is running in 10 countries across Asia and Latin America: Bolivia, Colombia, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Peru, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand.
VOICE project
Worldwide, children are at high risk of online harm such as online sexual exploitation of children. Strong rules and regulations are needed to make sure the internet is a safe place where children can learn, connect and play. Currently, the Regulation to Prevent and Combat Child Sexual Abuse is proposed in the European Union which also contains rules about the online world to protect children. Unfortunately, children’s voices (and those of their caregivers) are being overlooked in the debate on online safety.
To fill the gap of overlooking children in the online safety debate, the VOICE project was initiated. VOICE stands for Values, Opinions, and Insights from Children (and Caregivers) about E-safety. We engage in collaborative, meaningful and outcome driven Focus Group Discussions (FGD) with children while concurrently surveying parents and caregivers in 15 countries across the EU (Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Spain, The Netherlands), Asia (Bangladesh, Thailand and The Philippines) and Latin America (Bolivia and Brazil).
Objectives
The SUFASEC programme from the Down to Zero Alliance focuses on three main objectives:
What we do
The Down to Zero Alliance addresses the sexual exploitation of children by:
Enabling children and youth to defend their own rights
They can protect themselves from sexual exploitation as they recognise the signs of sexual exploitation and know how to report. They also play an active role in raising awareness, for instance with their peers. Through advocacy, they make their voices count in decision-making.
Helping communities to better protect their children from sexual exploitation
The environment where children grow up is safer, offers better protection of victims and prevents children from being victimised (again) by raising public awareness.
Improving and implementing relevant policies, laws and regulations in Asia and Latin America
Governments and judicial authorities implement policies, action plans and protocols to combat sexual exploitation of children and make budgets available for doing so.
Cooperating with the private sector
to for example prevent and address sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism.