“I miss you, Dad… When are we going to be together again?” The question echoes across a region where millions of families are separated by displacement, border closures, and legal red tape.
A crisis of displacement in the Americas
More than 7.7 million Venezuelans have left their country since 2015, according to the Inter-Agency Coordination Platform for Refugees and Migrants from Venezuela (R4V), making it the second-largest external displacement crisis in the world after Ukraine. While many aim for the United States, the journey north through Latin America is often perilous—especially for children.
The Panamanian government reported that over 520,000 people crossed the Darién Gap in 2023, among them nearly a quarter were children, many of whom made the journey unaccompanied or separated from caregivers.
Andrés, Daniel, and Sofía were among them. In 2022, they left Venezuela with their aunt, hoping to reunite with their father Antonio, who had gone ahead to the United States in search of safety and work. They passed through Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, and Guatemala before reaching Mexico.
Along the way, they witnessed upheaval and uncertainty. Eventually, their aunt could no longer continue the journey with them. Mexican child protection authorities intervened, placing the children in temporary care.
A safe place to heal
In November 2023, Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office selected SOS Children’s Villages in Comitán, Chiapas, to provide family-based foster care. One reason: its commitment to keeping biological siblings together.
“From the beginning, it was clear that their bond as siblings was their greatest strength,” shared their psychologist.
The children arrived facing both emotional challenges and academic delays. Since then, they’ve received psychosocial support, including play therapy and emotional development sessions. Andrés and Daniel enrolled in primary school, and Sofía started preschool. Their days are now filled with learning, play, and therapy — steps toward recovery from the trauma of displacement.
“With Sofía, we worked gently on rebuilding recognition. Initially, she did not remember her father well, but through her siblings’ excitement, she slowly embraced him again as her father figure,” explained a member of the psycho-pedagogical team.
The waiting game
Family reunification remains uncertain. In 2024, the first video call between the children and their father marked a turning point. Since then, the calls have grown into a regular routine, including both individual and group sessions facilitated by SOS Children’s Villages.
Although Antonio maintains close contact with Mexican authorities and staff, recent shifts in U.S. immigration policy have added new layers of difficulty to their reunification efforts. Measures aimed at tightening border entry and asylum eligibility have left many families in limbo.
Meanwhile, the children continue to develop and grow under care. Andrés, once shy, is now a role model. Daniel is curious and energetic, while Sofía loves playing in the garden and caring for animals.
Millions still waiting
According to UNICEF, an estimated 14.3 million individuals, including 4.7 million children, will require humanitarian assistance this year due to mixed migration and armed conflict in Latin America and the Caribbean. In Mexico alone, the government identified 91,206 migrant children and adolescents in irregular situations during 2023, of whom 6.2% were unaccompanied minors.
Organizations like SOS Children’s Villages play a crucial role in filling the protection gap, but they cannot work alone. Advocacy groups have called for stronger cross-border cooperation, child-focused migration policies, and durable solutions including reunification, integration, or resettlement.
Hope across borders
Through every obstacle, the bond between Andrés, Daniel, and Sofía has remained unbreakable. Their father continues to work tirelessly toward their reunion. For now, hope is the thread that holds their family together.
Their story is a reminder that behind migration statistics are real families — separated not by choice, but by necessity — and that every child has the right to safety, connection, and a place to call home.
*Names changed to protect privacy.