Working Across Sectors Child Protection Competency Frameworks

Children are disproportionately affected by humanitarian crises. They are a distinct group from adults, with unique needs and capacities that vary by age, gender, ability, legal status, and other individual characteristics. The centrality of children and their protection in humanitarian action is a shared responsibility of all humanitarian sectors, actors, staff and volunteers.

Advancing children’s protection and well-being across all sectors of humanitarian action requires strengthened competencies both within the Child Protection Sector and across all other humanitarian sectors. Child Protection actors need the skills to engage outwardly and work more closely with other sectors. Meanwhile, actors from all other humanitarian sectors need the skills to contribute to the collective goal of meeting the needs of children most at risk.

The competencies required by Child Protection actors are outlined in the Child Protection in Humanitarian Action (CPHA) Competency Framework.

For actors in the Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM), Food Security and Health sectors, the competencies required have been defined in three companion competency frameworks:

• The Child Protection Competency Framework for CCCM Actors,
• The Child Protection Competency Framework for Food Security Actors,
• The Child Protection Competency Framework for Health Actors.

These competency frameworks complement the CPHA Competency Framework, and are intended to support humanitarians in these sectors to understand the specific behaviours relevant to their roles that will strengthen the protection, well-being and safety of children. The overall goal of the Child Protection competency frameworks for Child Protection actors and actors in other humanitarian sectors is to ensure that all humanitarian actors work together to realise their collective responsibility to protect children affected by crisis.