Cash crunch renders ministry toothless

Cash crunch renders ministry toothless

2010-05-10

The Himalayan Times:

Himalayan News Service

KATHMANDU: Hard hit by finance crunch, the Ministry of Women, Children

and Social Welfare (MoWCSW) has been unable to monitor cases of

inter-country adoption for the last two years.

Sher Jung Karki, under-secretary at MoWCSW, said the ministry is in no

position to monitor cases of inter-country adoption, though the ministry itself introduced the provision.

According to the provision on inter-country adoption 2008, the fee

amount paid shall be deposited in the Government of Nepal's account. The Finance Ministry will then release a sum of money equal to the amount

collected in one year to the MoWCSW account. This money will be spent on welfare and protection of orphaned children, monitoring of listed

foreign organisations or agencies, child welfare home, orphanage or

children's organisation and other work determined by the ministry.

He informed that the ministry was working with 80 foreign agencies and

44 domestic agencies. "We have prioritised monitoring of adoption and

will resume it within two months," said the under-secretary adding that

the ministry has also been receiving reports of abuse of adopted

children in foreign countries. He said a list of countries to be

monitored was being prepared.

"Inter-country adoption applications have come in for 534 children this

year, but there are only 400 children available" said Karki informing

that around 40 children had been handed over till date.

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