In today's reality, having the skills to effectively engage with and support refugee and migrant children is vital, as they often face unique challenges such as interrupted education, loss of home and security, trauma, fear, and others.

The Council of Europe Office in Yerevan, in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Representation in Armenia, and the Centre for European Studies at Yerevan State University, successfully organised a Certificate Award Ceremony for participants of the pilot HELP course on “Refugee and Migrant children”.

The event, held on 24 September 2024, brought together over 30 participants from a wide range of organisations, including UNHCR Armenia, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, the Human Rights Defender’s Office, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the National Security Service, the Chamber of Advocates and Administrative Court, as well as representatives of civil society, such as World Vision and Mission Armenia NGO.

Keynote speeches were delivered by Maxime Longangué, Head of Council of Europe Office in Yerevan; Monica Sandri, UNHCR Representative ad interim in Armenia; Simon Babayan, Chairman of the Chamber of Advocates of Armenia; and Lilit Karapetyan, European Studies Master Programme Co-ordinator at Yerevan State University.

Karine Moreau, Project Manager in the Children’s Rights Division of the Council of Europe, presented an overview of the “Protecting the rights of Armenian children in post-conflict context” project, which supported the event.

In his opening remarks, Maxime Longangué, Head of Council of Europe Office in Yerevan, congratulated the course participants, emphasising the importance of cooperation between international organisations, local authorities, and civil society in their efforts to ensure that no child is left behind.

Monica Sandri from UNHCR Armenia stressed that the course provided participants with practical tools and knowledge to address the challenges faced by vulnerable children, ensuring their rights are protected.

The course, adapted into Armenian context by HELP tutor Sergey Ghazinyan, focused on key areas, such as legal protection for refugee and migrant children, child-friendly procedures, social rights, family reunification and guardianship.

Successful participants received certificates awarded to them by the officials from the Council of Europe and UNHCR Armenia.

Background information: The European Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP) supports the Council of Europe member states in implementing the European Convention on Human Rights. Its main objective is to enhance the capacity of judges, lawyers and prosecutors, in all 46 Council of Europe member states and beyond, to apply the European human rights standards in their daily work.