Reference :
V-F-CR-F-03252-A
Date :
09/2021
Title :
The Central Tracing Agency : connecting families
Duration :
00:03:22
Editor :
ARANDA RICO, Ana
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Production company :
ICRC
ICRC producer :
FELL, Nicola Eva
Description :
The Central Tracing Agency (CTA) is transforming.
From the moment someone loses contact with a loved one during a war, natural disaster or migration, the International Committee of the Red Cross' (ICRC) Central Tracing Agency is there to help. For over 150 years, the Central Tracing Agency has continuously adapted in response to changing circumstances.
Today, more and more people are searching for their relatives and the Central Tracing Agency must again transform to improve the response to their needs.
In complex settings, people need help to: - stay in touch - find each other, know the fate of their loved one or in the worst case, ensure the dead are treated with dignity and identified. The Central Tracing Agency leads the efforts of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement Family Links Network to accompany families through these journeys.
People may struggle to stay in touch because they are imprisoned, displaced, sick, without funds or afraid to have an online presence. Sometimes, an independent and neutral intermediary is needed to bring people and information together.
Ranging from free phone calls and phone charging stations to prison messages and red cross messages, our unique global network of national red cross and red crescent societies means we can connect people across frontlines and in the remotest of villages.
And when letters go unanswered, or calls don’t go through, a Central Tracing Agency staff member or Red Cross volunteer can go to the last place the loved one was seen and try to gather information. Now, we are investing in our own work force to boost their skills and ensure their physical presence on the ground close to those who need us most.
It is vital to accompany families as they search for a missing loved one, helping them through the sad bureaucracy - be it a widow’s pension, land rights or missing or death certificates; or providing micro-loans to restart their livelihoods; helping them to cope as life goes on. The Central Tracing Agency, along with other ICRC services, can provide help.
There are also various ways to amplify the search, including through new technology such as artificial intelligence that can be harnessed to search unconnected databases. The Central Tracing Agency can also be the central repository that brings the pieces of information together safely and securely to help families find answers about their loved ones.
And in the worst-case scenarios, we put our unique expertise in humanitarian forensics at the disposal of authorities to identify bodies and bring news to families. We are now working to create a surge capacity in forensics so that the dead are treated with dignity even in an emergency.
The Central Tracing Agency is also strengthening its advisory role towards States and practitioners to help prevent or solve disappearances through best practices and by putting families at the center of the global conversation.
Families deserve answers. The Central Tracing Agency is there every step of the way to help find them.
English title :
The Central Tracing Agency : connecting families
Colour/B&W :
colour
SD/HD :
HD
Resolution :
1920 x 1080
Aspect ratio :
16/9
Original material/format :
H264
Best material/format available :
ProRes 422
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