774 unaccompanied refugee children disappeared in Belgium in 2024
774 unaccompanied refugee children disappeared in Belgium last year. Of those disappearances, at least 101 can be described as particularly worrying, according to figures requested by Groen MP Matti Vandemaele and reported in De Standaard on Wednesday.
Of the minors who disappeared in 2024, 246 were eventually found. More than 500 are completely untraceable. 101 of these disappearances are considered particularly worrying: for example, the child is younger than 13, was last seen in an unsafe place or in disturbing company, or has a physical or mental disability. Similar figures were recorded in 2023.
“Children who are fleeing without the guidance of an adult are extremely vulnerable,” Vandemaele told De Standaard. “The fact that our government cannot even protect these children is a sad failure.”
He wants the competent ministers to do more to protect the children, such as appointing a guardian when a child arrives in Belgium alone. He is calling for more tailor-made reception facilities with appropriate support so they do not end up wandering around cities.
Vandemaele also urges the Belgian government to help develop a European action plan to tackle disappearances, as previously recommended by the Belgian foundation Child Focus.
“A child on the run is looking for a new safe place,” he said. “Instead of finding a new safe home, these children are at risk of becoming victims of abuse, exploitation or crime.”
A squatter in Brussels in 2023 © BELGA PHOTO JAMES ARTHUR GEKIERE
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