Orphanages no place for infants, government says
National July 21, 2017
Orphanages no place for infants, government says
Pech Sotheary / Khmer Times Share:
Children under the age of three will no longer be accommodated in residential care centres by the end of next year, while the building of new orphanages will be banned, the Ministry of Social Affairs has announced.
The move came as the ministry and partner organisations pushed ahead with plans unveiled in April to reintegrate 3,500 children from orphanages back into families.
Speaking at an event at the Himawari Hotel in Phnom Penh yesterday, Ros Sokha, head of the ministry’s child welfare department, said that 449 of 3,500 children from orphanages in five cities and provinces have already been rehoused.
The remainder will be reintegrated into communities by the end of 2018.
Mr Sokha said: “The reintegration has been carried out very carefully, with clear case-by-case checks.”
Currently, there are more than 16,000 children living in 406 childcare centres throughout the country.
The ministry selected Battambang, Siem Reap, Kandal and Preah Sihanouk provinces, as well as Phnom Penh, to test the programme to reintegrate children into families or community-based care options.
In April, Social Affairs Minister Vong Soth said integrated children enjoyed more positive development than those growing up in residential care centres.
Those in orphanages, he said, were susceptible to various kinds of abuse and negligence, and sometimes also turned to drugs.
Debora Comini, UNICEF representative in Cambodia, backed the government’s programme at the time, claiming research shows four among five children living in centres have parents who are still alive.
“This is concerning, because children living in unregulated and un-inspected institutions are more at risk of neglect, as well as physical and sexual abuse and trafficking. The Convention on the Rights of the Child guides the work of governments and UNICEF, and clearly states that every child has the right to grow up in a loving family environment,” she said.
Tags: child welfare, Ministry of Social Affairs, residential care centres, Ros Sokha
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