Colombia's Child Recruitment Crisis Worsens Amid Rise in Gang Violence

Strategic Insights -

The United Nations has verified 474 cases of child recruitment or use in Colombia between 2022 and 2024, with a notable increase in instances where children were coerced into gangs through social media platforms like TikTok and Facebook. The UN Human Rights Office in Colombia warned that the situation was worsening in 2025, with 118 allegations of recruitment or use of children in the first quarter of that year, of which 51 were verified. The crisis is also linked to an increase in violence across the country, with clashes between armed groups causing displacement and loss of life.

Key Takeaways:

  • The UN Human Rights Office in Colombia has verified 474 cases of child recruitment or use between 2022 and 2024, with a notable increase in instances where children were coerced into gangs through social media platforms.
  • In 36 cases, children were recruited at school, while recruitment through social networking platforms was of "grave concern".
  • Social media companies TikTok and Meta are being criticized for failing to properly tackle the problem of child recruitment, with UN representatives suggesting they would take action if the problem occurred in their home countries.
  • Investigators from the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) stated that posts about child recruitment on social media platforms can receive up to 625,000 views, indicating the scale of the problem.
  • The UN Human Rights Office reported that in the first quarter of 2025, it received 118 allegations of recruitment or use of children, of which 51 were verified.
  • The crisis is linked to an increase in violence across the country, with clashes between armed groups causing displacement and loss of life.
  • The International Crisis Group has warned that the rate of child recruitment has reached its highest point in more than a decade.
  • The Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) has reported that since the final peace agreement with Farc in 2016, a minor had been recruited on average every 48 hours.
  • Many families are too afraid to report their children missing due to fears of reprisals and stigmatisation.
  • A 15-year-old was charged with the attempted assassination of the presidential candidate Miguel Uribe, with authorities claiming a criminal organisation was behind the attack.

Statistics:

  • 474: the number of verified cases of child recruitment or use in Colombia between 2022 and 2024.
  • 36: the number of cases in which children were recruited at school.
  • 118: the number of allegations of recruitment or use of children received by the UN Human Rights Office in the first quarter of 2025.
  • 51: the number of verified cases of child recruitment or use in the first quarter of 2025.
  • 625,000: the number of views some posts about child recruitment on social media platforms can receive.
  • 18,000: the number of minors recruited by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) before it demobilised in 2016.
  • 20: the number of minors found among 112 members of the armed 33rd Front who turned themselves in in January.
  • 48 hours: the average time between the signing of the final peace agreement with Farc in 2016 and the recruitment of a minor by armed groups.

Sources:

  • United Nations Human Rights Office in Colombia
  • International Crisis Group
  • Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP)
  • TikTok
  • Meta
  • Photograph: Photograph: TikTok/Facebook (Caption: TikTok video screen grab of big cars and back of young person with weapon and military fatigues)