Led by: Plan International and War Child
Contact us at: caafag.tf@alliancecpha.org
Our Mission
The overall goal of the Children Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups (CAAFAG) Task Force is to coordinate and collaborate amongst humanitarian responders and development actors and to provide technical support and capacity building to field practitioners to strengthen quality programming in emergencies and protracted crisis that prevents recruitment, facilitates release and responds to the needs of children associated with armed forces or armed groups.
Key Priorities of the Children Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups (CAAFAG) Task Force
- Increase field practitioner access to and use of inter-agency guidance and tools to prevent and respond to child recruitment in armed forces and armed groups.
- Enhance the knowledge, skills and behaviour of humanitarian and development responders to prevent and respond to child recruitment into armed forces and armed groups.
- Share evidence, research, good practices and lessons learned that contribute to a better understanding of CAAFAG issues and effective response.
- Facilitate linkages between the CAAFAG TF and the other global platforms and initiatives, including but not limited to Paris Principles Steering Group and other Task Forces and Working Groups under the Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action.
Latest News
The Alliance MOOC’s available for FREE - Ending March 2025!
We wanted to share an important update about two of our Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) hosted on FutureLearn— both are available for free, but only until March 2025! If you haven’t enrolled yet, now is the perfect time to take advantage of this opportunity to enhance your skills in child protection programming. Find more information about each course and the link to enroll below! 1. MOOC |...
Red Hand Day 2024
February 12th marks adoption of the Optional Protocol of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child for the protection of children in armed conflict. Also known as ‘ Red Hand Day’ , this day of international awareness aims to remind the international community to strengthen efforts to end the recruitment and use of children in armed conflicts. In 2023, the escalation of armed conflicts...
Online Survey - Addressing Recruitment of Children by Armed Groups Designated as Terrorist Organisations
Building on existing resources such as the Paris Principles Operational Handbook and the CAAFAG Toolkit, the CAAFAG Taskforce is developing a new Technical Note on recruitment and use of AGDTO, on the request of members of the Taskforce and Global Alliance. Noting the information already available, we are keen to make sure that the Technical Note includes additional, specific, and very practical...
Task Force Member Organisations
Key Tools
Technical Note | Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups: Lessons Learnt and Good Practices on Prevention of Recruitment and Use, Release and Reintegration
This Technical Note provides information on the challenges that girls associated with armed forces and armed groups (GAAFAG) face during their recruitment, their period of association, and their reintegration, as well as lessons learnt and promising practices to implement gender-sensitive and gender-informed prevention, release and reintegration programmes. Very little global guidance is available
Resources
Growing Strong Together: A Parenting Program to Support the Reintegration of Children and Prevent their Recruitment
This Intervention Package aims at supporting practitioners to roll out and implement parenting intervention to protect children, and adolescents and young persons (8-21 years) from recruitment and promote their reintegration following association with armed forces or armed groups. If you would like to implement parenting interventions in CAAFAG contexts, these resources are for you, to help you...
Report | Capacity Needs and Gaps Analysis: CAAFAG Programming
The Alliance CAAFAG Task Force is implementing an interagency project with the aim to strengthen the capacities of field practitioners to design and implement programs related to the prevention of child recruitment, the release and the reintegration of children associated with armed forces and armed groups across multiple contexts. Through this project, Plan International will develop a capacity...
May 2000 Child in Armed Conflict Resolution: Optional protocol to the Convention on the rights of the child on the involvement of children in armed conflict
The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on Children's Involvement in Armed Conflict aims to safeguard children from being recruited and used in hostilities. The General Assembly approved the Protocol on May 25, 2000, and it went into effect on February 12, 2002.
Webinars
Webinar | Capturing Voices: Evidence Generation for CAAFAG
Watch the recording in French or Spanish ! The involvement of children associated with armed forces and armed groups (CAAFAG) in evidence generation, including data collection for research and learning, is often methodologically and ethically challenging. While it is understandable that field practitioners may be hesitant to involve CAAFAG in knowledge generation activities due to the risks and...
Virtual Launch of the Technical Note on Education for CAAFAG
Join the Alliance CAAFAG Task Force for the virtual launch of a brand new technical note on Education and Child Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups! This 60-minute moderated dialogue will feature interventions by panellists on education programming and key recommendations to foster collaboration between the child protection and education sectors. Simultaneous interpretation will be...
Virtual Launch of the Technical Note on Livelihood for CAAFAG
Join the Alliance CAAFAG Task Force for the virtual launch of a brand new technical note on Livelihood and Child Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups! This 60-minute moderated dialogue will feature interventions by panellists on livelihood programming and key recommendations to foster collaboration between the child protection and Food Security and Livelihood sectors. Simultaneous...
Webinar | Prevention of Recruitment and Use of Children
The CAAFAG task force is pleased to invite you to a webinar on the Prevention of Recruitment and Use of Children on 25 May 2023 15.00 – 16.00 CET (Geneva). Interpretation will be provided in French, Spanish and Arabic. This webinar will focus on the prevention of recruitment and use of children in armed forces and armed groups. This is an opportunity to hear from child protection actors about...
Webinar | Children Associated with Armed Groups Designated as Terrorists
The Alliance CAAFAG Task Force is pleased to invite you to a webinar on “ Children associated with armed groups designated as terrorists ” on Tuesday 22nd November 2022 from 15:00 – 16:30 CET (Geneva). Interpretation will be provided in French, Spanish and Arabic. This webinar will focus on a discussion on the legal frameworks for CAAFAG, advocacy strategies for children in detention and on how...
Webinar | Community-Level Prevention: Release and Reintegration of Child Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups (CAAFAG)
This webinar will focus on the involvement of the community in the prevention of recruitment and use, the facilitation of release, and the reintegration of children associated with armed forces and armed groups (CAAFAG). This is an opportunity to hear from child protection actors about their experience in engaging the communities in CAAFAG programming and to discuss good practices, lessons learned...
Webinar | Handover Protocols for the Transfer of Children Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups, Including CAAFAG in Detention
Find the Concept Note for this event here. Thousands of children in situations of armed conflict are doubly victimized: first, at the hands of armed groups or forces that recruit and use them in their ranks, and then by parties to the conflict who detain them for their alleged association with those groups or forces. Many of these children never receive the reintegration support and services they...
Virtual Launch | Children Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups Programme Development Toolkit
The CAAFAG Task Force is very pleased to announce the launch of the CAAFAG Programme Development Toolkit on the 16th of February at 9 am EST/ 3 pm CET. Simultaneous Interpretaion in French, Spanish and Arabic will be available during the event! The objective of the toolkit is to provide field practitioners with the knowledge and skills to design quality gender-based programmes for CAAFAG, with the...
CAAFAG and COVID-19 [English]
This webinar will focus on the impacts of COVID-19 on programs related to children associated with armed forces and armed groups. Building from Key Messages and Considerations for Programming for CAAFAG During COVID-19, this webinar will bring together CP practitioners from Nigeria, South Sudan, and the Philippines to discuss challenges, good practices, and lessons learned. Children who spend any...
Webinar | Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups
Register via this Zoom link. The Alliance CAAFAG Task Force is pleased to invite you to a webinar on Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups! Sandra Maignant, CAAFAG advisor for Plan International and writer of the Technical Note on Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups will present the findings of her research and recommendations for gender sensitive programming. The...
Webinar | Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups (French version)
Register via this Zoom link. The Alliance CAAFAG Task Force is pleased to invite you to a webinar on Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups! Sandra Maignant, CAAFAG advisor for Plan International and writer of the Technical Note on Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups will present the findings of her research and recommendations for gender sensitive programming. The...
Webinar | Launch of the Technical Note on Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups
Register via this Zoom link. Dear colleagues, We hope you are and your loved ones are well. The CAAFAG Task Force, co-led by UNICEF and Plan International, is excited to invite you to the Virtual Launch of a Technical Note on Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups! The event will include a moderated discussion including two young women along with a discussion of the recommendations...
Webinar | CAAFAG and COVID-19 (French version)
Veuillez vous inscrire par ce Zoom link. Ce webinaire portera sur l'impact de la pandémie de COVID-19 sur les programmes concernant les enfants associés aux forces et groupes armés. A travers les messages clés et les considérations en lien avec ces programmes, ce webinaire réunira des professionnels de la protection de l'enfance travaillant dans les contextes de le Mali, la République démocratique...
