Welcome to the

Down to Zero Learning Platform

Commercial sexual exploitation of children is a pressing issue worldwide that needs to be tackled. The Down to Zero Alliance aims to put a stop to it in eleven countries. The Alliance is a collaboration between Terre des Hommes Netherlands, Defence for Children-ECPAT, Free a Girl, ICCO and Plan Netherlands, with sponsorship from our strategic partner, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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Restarting travel and tourism in Asia with child protection in focus

A webinar on how do we ensure children are protected from sexual exploitation as the travel and tourism industry recovers after the COVID-19 pandemic? A look from Asia.

Speak Out: The Sexual Exploitation of Children by Tourists and Travellers

The sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism has dramatically expanded across the globe. The huge growth in international and domestic travel has increased both the number of travellers and tourists and the number of children vulnerable to sexual exploitation. Survivors speak out in this video and ask all of us a question: as our world becomes smaller through increased travel and internet access, how can we help protect children from this horrific abuse by travellers and tourists?

Learning Question 1

How to engage strategically with the private sector to ensure that we realise meaningful private sector engagement, in our fight against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children?

Learning Question 2

What are effective child empowerment strategies, taking into account age and gender, in our programma against sexual exploitation of children?

Objective: Increase Effectiveness

The members of the DtZ alliance continuously reflect upon the Theory of Change, the pathways, outcomes and outputs, and assumptions. Knowledge and insights are being generated on the relevance and effectiveness of our interventions aimed at victims of CSEC or children at risk of CSEC. Based on reflections during annual outcome harvesting meetings and learning meetings, the Theory of Change will be adapted and renewed if needed.

Objective: Create synergy

This component of learning focuses on the alliance internally. By sharing best practices amongst the implementing partners, partners are encouraged to learn and to identify new ideas and knowledge to increase the fight against CSEC effectively. Each Alliance partner has several implemented approaches which can complement each other (e.g. certain service delivery and ways to diminish the demand for CSEC). Other approaches which are similar to each other lend themselves for comparative analysis (e.g. different ways to community based approaches towards CSEC).

Objective: Innovate

The field of CSEC is constantly changing. Innovative approaches are needed to address new phenomena such as online sexual exploitation of children. New approaches are also required to forge better ways to address recurring underlying problems or drivers more effectively, at a wider scale and longer-term. The Alliance aims to co-create innovative approaches with partners, for example new ways to engage with the private sector strategically and to empower children effectively (taking into account age and gender). In this co-creation process, also external stakeholders will be involved, like embassies, multilateral organisations, private sector, authorities or other NGOs. Partners do not operate in a vacuum and it is crucial to learn from other perspectives and existing approaches of other stakeholders.