CHILDREN UNDER THREE YEARS

IN FORMAL CARE

IN CEE/CIS COUNTRIES

THE BIG PICTURE IN THE REGION

Presentation by Jean-Claude LegrandSenior Regional Advisor Child Protection

UNICEF Regional Office CEE-CIS

Separation: More children continue to be separated from their families. Children below three are, in general, at higher risk of family separation than older children

Probability of losing parental care for children 0-2 and children 0-17 in 2009 (number of cases per 100,000 children of relevant age)

NB: data for other CEE/CIS countries were not available through TransMonEE.

Numbers: The « positive » overall decrease of the rate of institutionalisation of children 0-3 hides « negative » country specificities

A look at today’s numbers Proportion of children 0-3 in institutions by location (as of 2012)

Rates: Rate of children 0-3 in residential care in 2000 and 2009 (by country and by sub-region)

Trends: A look at the trends in rates 2000 - 2009

Percentages: A look at the percentages of children 0-3 among children 0-17 in institutions

NB: 22,2% is the average percentage of children 0-3 among children 0-17 (if we consider that all age groups are equal – it is therefore an approximation.

Access to services: There is too little use of foster care for children 0-3

Percentage of CEE/CIS countries with foster care for children 0-3 (as of 2012)

The rights of children 0-3 are violated and unrealized when they are placed in institutions

Rights of children 0-3

Impairments linked to institutionalisation

Survival and Development Rights

Right to develop to one’s fullest potential

Right to health

Rights to adequate food

Right to protection of a family life

Right to leisure and recreation

.

Rights of children 0-3

Impairments linked to institutionalisation

Protection Rights

Freedom from discrimination

Protection from abuse and neglect

Protection from sale, trafficking and abduction

Rights of children 0-3

Impairments linked to institutionalisation

Participation Rights

Respect for the views and feelings of the young child

Right to a private life

The right to a personal history

CEE/CIS States have an obligation to Respect, Protect and Fulfil the rights of children 0-3 contained in the CRC

1) An equity issue …

Reasons for the institutionalisation of

children below 3 years of age in Western Europe countries

parental abuseor neglect

orphans

disability

social reasons

Reasons for the institutionalisation of

children below 3 years of age in Central and Eastern

Europe countries

parentalabuse orneglecttrue orphans

disability

socialreasons

Source: EU Daphné Programme (2004)

Western Europe Vs. Central and Eastern Europe…

Specialists Vs. Mothers… a case study from the Karaganda oblast, Kazakhstan (2011)

The profile of a mother who is forced to abandon a child …

“aged about 25, with more than 3 children, illiterate or without completed education,

unemployed before the birth of the abandoned child, with about BGN 85 monthly income per household member, with Roma ethnic identity

(54.7%), living in a village or in a small town, the father is unknown or reluctant to recognize the

child”.

UNICEF Bulgaria (2010)

- Unity and stability of the family:- .- Age of the mother:

- Size of the family:

- Health of parents and children:

- Disability of the parents or the child:

- Low level of education of the parents

- Parental abuse and neglect (lack of statistics)

- Financial issues:

Any factor, including financial issues is sufficient to lead to institutionalization but set the stage for conditions by which other elements can lead to institutionalization.

PERSONAL AND FAMILY FACTORS

MAIN SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS

THE WAY FORWARD

FOCUSING ON RESULTS

UNICEF’s Call to Action: END PLACING CHILDREN UNDER THREE YEARS IN INSTITUTIONS

1. Legislative changes limiting to last resort, and setting strict conditions for, the placement into institutional care of children below three years;

2. 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;

3. Proper budget allocation for supporting vulnerable families through the development of appropriate family-based responses and services;

4. 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 institutionalisation;

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

The 5 core interventions:

Helping governments …

- Establish a monitoring system of abandonment and relinquishment from maternity hospitals

- Establish patronage nurses and home-visitation

- Improve interaction between social welfare services and health services

- Encourage early mother-to-child relationship

- Improve health and social care professionals’ training

- Establishment of standards of practice

Communications Romania and Azerbaijan

Helping society ….

- Help the general public to be aware of children’s rights and the risks of institutionalisation for children below three years

- Help families to understand more social services available

- Help the public understand the foster care system

- Help people understand discrimination (children of Roma origin and children with disabilities)

“Every Child Needs a Family” campaign (Croatia)