Action Research

Labour migration of citizens from Eastern Europe to the European Union has steadily increased over the past decade. Economic hardship and the search for higher living standards have led numerous Moldovan and Ukrainian citizens to seek employment on a permanent or seasonal basis in the European Union. While certain families migrate as a unit, many children remain left behind by one or both of their parents/caregivers, resulting in the growing phenomenon of transnational families.

Through establishing a research centre for the study of transnational families within the structure of the Babeș-Bolyai University of Romania  this action aims to advance research and institutionalise the study of transnational families, which is presently not only scarce and dispersed but also too often not solution-oriented and rather disconnected from the policy-making realm, particularly in relation to labour migration. Diversity and inclusion considerations will be at the heart of the research and attention will be paid to the risks, needs and opportunities encountered by children left behind with differentiation based on gender, age, and diversity (socio-economic status, ethnicity, education, disability etc.), in order to inform the design of appropriate protection frameworks. Secondly, translating this knowledge from research into operational intervention, the action will combine direct action, training and awareness-raising activities using participatory methods, with a view of better protecting and empowering children left behind and their families. This action will directly assist Moldova and Ukraine in strengthening their institutional support to transnational families as well as benefit Romania and more generally receiving EU Member States through the creation and dissemination of information, technical advice and good practices that foster safe and ethical labour migration schemes in alignment with child protection standards.