The Regional Roundtable on Mechanisms for Searching for Missing Children: Statistics, Challenges, and Improvement of Systemic Procedures in an International Framework was held on October 17th at the Metropol Hotel in Belgrade.
This event was organized by the Center for Missing Children and was attended by representatives from the Ministries of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Serbia, Republic of Bosina and Herzegovina, Republic of North Macedonia, Republic of Montenegro, and Republic of Romania, as well as representatives from the Embassy of the United States in Serbia and members of the team from the Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The goal of the roundtable was to exchange experiences related to the search for missing children in the region and to present the impressions of representatives from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Serbia regarding the establishment of the “Find Me” system.
At the beginning of the event, Igor Jurić, founder and president of the Center for Missing and Exploited Children, addressed the attendees, emphasizing the importance of regional cooperation:
“Exchanging experiences can truly be of crucial importance in solving some searches, which often tend to be very complex, more quickly. Therefore, if we are united in the region in terms of searching for missing children, I believe that it can be of multiple significance for our entire region – because if there are any differences among us in the region, we must not disagree on one thing, and that is child safety.”
Following the successful amendment of the Police Act, which mandates that the search for a missing child be initiated immediately upon the report of the disappearance, our organization recognized the need for an “Amber Alert” system in Serbia. After a successful campaign, we are proud to say that the “Find Me” system was finally introduced and first activated in 2023.
In this regard, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Serbia presented how the “Find Me” system operates, providing a detailed insight into the best practices and software solutions developed for its efficiency.
After that, representatives from other Ministries of Internal Affairs shared their experiences and demonstrated initiative regarding the introduction of this system. The discussion focused on future steps and joint strategies for improving regional cooperation in the search for missing children, emphasizing the importance of connecting resources and exchanging information among countries in the region.
This meeting represents an important step towards strengthening child safety and empowering joint efforts in protecting their rights.