Toronto, 06 August 2026 – A lack of safe housing, identification and specialized support for migrant girls who have arrived in Ceuta could increase their exposure to violence, trafficking and exploitation, said Save the Children calling for their protection be an immediate priority of the response, the children’s rights organization warns.
Ceuta’s child protection system is currently under extraordinary pressure. About 1,000 migrant children and adolescents are already in care in designated centres and facilities, a figure that far exceeds the city’s capacity which has fewer than 100 places.
Added to this is the concern for the minors who have not yet been identified and taken to a child protection centre. Of the estimated 4,000 to 7,000 children and adolescents who may have arrived in Ceuta, not all have been located, and it is feared that some remain homeless, hiding in wooded areas or other parts of the city, without access to a safe place or the protection resources they need.
Jennifer Zuppiroli, migration specialist at Save the Children in Spain, said:
“In a crisis of this magnitude, girls and adolescents can become especially invisible. It’s not enough to count how many children and adolescents have arrived: we need to know who they are, where they are, and what their needs are. A teenage girl who is alone and outside the system can be extremely vulnerable to violence, exploitation, or trafficking.
“Organisations working on the ground and providing aid and shelter to people experiencing homelessness are raising the alarm about the extreme vulnerability they face.”
Save the Children is calling for the identification of girls and adolescents to be carried out actively and urgently, including the search for those who may remain outside of protection resources, and that all be referred to safe spaces where they can receive specialized care and psychosocial support .
The organization highly values the Ministry of Equality’s initiative to offer its collaboration to the Autonomous City of Ceuta to strengthen the protection of women living on the streets and to warn them about the specific risks of violence, trafficking, and exploitation to which they may be exposed in the current context. These kinds of messages help to highlight protection needs that require an urgent and coordinated response from all relevant authorities, especially in a humanitarian emergency such as the one the city is experiencing.
Save the Children has been working in Spain for more than 30 years. The child rights organization was working in Ceuta during the previous migration crisis in 2021, focused on child protection. While we don’t have a current operational presence in Ceuta, our work on migration is always there when children need us. We currently have active projects and programs supporting children on the move in Málaga (Andalusia), the Canary Islands and Melilla.
ENDS
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