Protecting Migrant Children in Thailand: Importance of Social Integration and Roles of Civil Society

This paper investigates access to birth registration, education, and health care for cross-border migrant children in Thailand. It also emphasizes the importance of integrating migrant populations into Thai society and the role local civil society organizations play in protecting and improving children’s access to these rights. Data collected from previous fieldwork conducted in Thailand’s border areas (Mae Sot-Tak, Chumporn, Ranong, Phang-nga, and Chiang Rai) from 2016 to 2020 is analyzed here. With regional variations, the quantitative survey found that between 40 percent and 80 percent of migrant children born in Thailand had their births registered. School enrollment rates for children aged 7 to 14 ranged from 50 percent to almost 100 percent. Notably, most children were enrolled at NGO-run migrant children’s learning centers (MLCs), with less than half attending Thai regular schools (except for Chiang Rai, where Thai school enrollment surpassed MLC enrollment). When it came to access to health care, a large proportion of children (ranging from 30 percent to 95 percent) in all the surveyed areas lacked health insurance coverage. Qualitative data analysis revealed a discrepancy between Thai laws and their practical application. While regulations permit birth registration, school enrollment, and health insurance access for all migrant children regardless of their parents’ immigration status, numerous obstacles still restrict their access to these rights. The analysis demonstrates that the social integration of migrants and active local civil society organizations can be crucial enablers and mechanisms for protecting migrant children’s rights while simultaneously improving the quality of life for both cross-border migrants and local Thais in the communities surveyed.