At Home or in a Home?At Home or in a Home?Formal care and

adoption of children

in Eastern Europe

and Central Asia

Presentation by: Jean Claude Legrand, Regional Advisor on Child Protection, UNICEF RO for CEECIS

Key issues pertaining to children Key issues pertaining to children deprived of parental care in CEECISdeprived of parental care in CEECIS

There are some 1.3 million children in different forms of family substitute care across CEE/CIS region, illustrating a high level of separation of children from their biological families.

The region has the highest number of children in residential care in the world. Some 600,000 children grow up in residential care.

The proportion of children living in residential institutions who have no living parent is between 2% and 5%. Most commonly, children are placed in care because of disability, family breakdown, violence in the home, lack of social support systems, and poor social and economic conditions, including poverty.

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Good news and bad news… two in one!Good news and bad news… two in one!

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Economic growth, but no decrease in Economic growth, but no decrease in separationseparation

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Hidden increase in use of residential careHidden increase in use of residential care

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Gatekeeping: How do children leave the Gatekeeping: How do children leave the institutions?institutions?

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Adoption is an option but only for some…Adoption is an option but only for some…

Adoption is an option but only for some…Adoption is an option but only for some…

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Who are the children?Who are the children?

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Children with disabilitiesChildren with disabilities

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Proportion of children w. disabilities in Proportion of children w. disabilities in residential careresidential care

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Children under the age of threeChildren under the age of three

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Proportion of children under three in Proportion of children under three in residential care out of all children in res care.residential care out of all children in res care.

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Rate of children under three in Rate of children under three in residential careresidential care

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Disclaimer…Disclaimer…

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Example of Serbia trends in formal care

Next step? A Call for Action!Next step? A Call for Action!

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It is time to reform the system now!It is time to reform the system now!• Legislative changes limiting to last resort, and setting strict conditions for, the placement into

institutional care of children below three years;

• Allocation of resources giving priority to the development of appropriate local services allowing alternative solutions for children below three with special attention to the needs of children with disabilities;

• Proper budget allocations for supporting vulnerable families through the development of appropriate family based responses and services;

• Capacity-building and standards of practice for maternity ward and paediatric hospital staff to support parents of newborns with a disability and parents from most vulnerable groups, in order to discourage institutionalization;

• Partnership with media and civil society to promote social inclusion of children deprived of parental care and children with disabilities.

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Join us!Join us!

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www.unicef.org/ceecis