To mark the European Anti-Trafficking Day on October 18 and raise public awareness about the crime of forced child begging, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice of Georgia and with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway, has highlighted the often invisible dangers that child beggars face.

The most common forms of child exploitation in Georgia are forced begging and sexual and labour exploitation of minors. Children, often below the age of 10, can be forced to beg by their parents, siblings, guardians, or even by criminal gangs. Child beggars work long hours and are often abused. Among victims of forced begging are migrants who come from impoverished areas.

To connect with the broad public, including youth, IOM decided to partner with Gagosha, a Tbilisi-based street artist, whose work raises awareness on social issues, including forced begging and lack of access to education for children. The mural produced by Gagosha (can been seen in the Vake Park underground, Tbilisi) for IOM was transformed into the posters, that carry crucial awareness-raising messages and information. On 18 October IOM installed the posters at several bus stops in Tbilisi and Kutaisi. Banners with the same image and messages were placed in the Justice Houses of Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Batumi, Telavi and Rustavi. A targeted awareness-raising video, inspired by the “Black Cube Campaign”, was developed by IOM Georgia and broadcast by commercial and public TV stations and through social media channels. With this multi-media campaign IOM is determined to lift the curtain on the dangers that young beggars face and show the negative consequences that ensue from our misinformed actions.

Bus stop on Baratashvili Street in Tbilisi is always busy. This is also a part of the city where children can often be found working in the streets.

Vake Park underground, Tbilisi