In Thailand, migrant women and children are deemed to be the most disadvantaged and vulnerable groups. Migrant children without birth registration are the most vulnerable, as having no legal identity deprives them of the basic rights to access health, education and other public services provided by the state. On the other hand, migrant women’s work is undervalued, with wages systemically lower than those for nationals or men migrants. Moreover, the lack of formalization of several major sectors of women’s employment leads to women not being afforded basic labour rights, such as the minimum wage, regular working hours, overtime pay and social security.

As a child-focused organisation, WVFT recognizes the importance and vulnerability of migrant children. However, working with migrant children particularly on their access to equitable and quality education is complex, involving different actors at different levels such as government agencies and civil society. WVFT implements integrated services and sectoral programmes for women migrant workers and migrant children, integrating health, decent work, social protection and education services in the areas where it works. Our partnership with a range of government organisations is also leveraged in order to strengthen referrals for gender-based violence as well as labour rights violations. In addition, cross-cutting interventions with migrant parents on child protection and child development are also implemented.
To resource and ensure sustainability of this multi-sector and integrated approach to service delivery, WVFT has built relationships with a range of donors, technical partners, government and CSOs.

In the previous years, WVFT has received funding and technical support from UNICEF, ILO and EU to implement interventions on social protection and education for migrant workers and their children. Coordination and collaboration with civil society is also leveraged through our membership of the Child Rights Coalition (CRC) Thailand, working with over 40 CSOs on Child Rights issues, with a sub-working group focused specifically on education, health, gender equality and social inclusion (GESI).