Abstract

Migration is not a new phenomenon for children and adults in many regions. However, the world is witnessing an ever-increasing movement of children across the globe. Hopes of better livelihoods, educational opportunities, the surge in prolonged crises and exposure to adversities are pushing ever more significant numbers of children to leave their homes. Enroute and upon arrival in host destinations, these children experience a number of adversities. This paper focuses on unaccompanied refugee children in an urban environment. It seeks to contribute to the understanding of this phenomenon by exploring—first—the concept of childhood and—socond—the experiences that unaccompanied refugee children are confronted with enroute to and while navigating their daily lives in Johannesburg’s inner-city. In so doing, it aims to challenge the universal notion that children are humans that are yet to become. By exploring child agency, this study aims to contribute to the understanding of children as active agents of their journeys. The fundamental contention I make is that there is a need to go beyond simply appreciating children as social actors in an attempt to unearth the contexts in which their everyday agency unfolds. It is also vital to inquire about the type of agency that these children have, how they obtain and utilise it, and how their agency connects them to their resourcefulness; and how that—essentially—impacts on their health and well-being.

Presenters

Sinoyolo Godongwana
Student, Master of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Gauteng, South Africa

Details

Presentation Type

Paper Presentation in a Themed Session

Theme

Social and Community Studies

KEYWORDS

ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES, CHILDHOOD, INNER-CITY, JOHANNESBURG, REFUGEE, UNACCOMPANIED, WELL-BEING

Digital Media

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