Georgetown: Children in residential institutional care could soon find themselves in a caring home environment. At present, some 700 children live in state of privately run institution.
This year, the Child Care and Protection Agency (CC&PA) received an increased budgetary allocation of $471M as compared to $253M in 2015.
Minister of Social Protection, Volda Lawrence, during the recently concluded National Budget Debate explained that the money allocated to the CC&PA would be used to roll out several initiatives to ensure that children who are in ‘homes’ are placed in a family setting. In the first instance, the ministry would be looking to have the children reintegrated with their biological parents. Failing this, adoption or foster care would be pursued.
The budgetary allocation also provides for the extension of the Child Care and Protection building at Broad Street, rehabilitation and extension of the Drop-in-Centre and the rehabilitation of Sophia Halfway Centre.
Most children in institutional care come from broken homes and would have suffered some sort of abuse including physical and sexual. Poverty also has an impact when parents cannot afford to provide the basic needs for a child.
According to Minister Lawrence, the Minister of Social Protection will also be tackling child abuse, especially sexual abuse, introduce a Teen Prevention Pregnancy programme; launch a campaign about child protection and implement the Early Childhood Development programme that will include licencing of Day Care facilities.
She said that the Ministry will be introducing greater financial support for families, including micro credit for both male and female single parents, to ensure that they are able to provide for their child/children.
The CC&PA in collaboration with stakeholders will draft a national policy document for children in institutional care. It would focus on areas of supporting, protecting and caring for children.
The Ministry of Social Protection will also be launching a public education and awareness campaign to raise awareness of child abuse. This is an effort to propel the public to address child abuse in the society, Minister Lawrence said.
Through this programme, the public will be informed on how abuse and neglect affect the health and well-being of a child. It will also look at how to spot child abuse and neglect and actions that the public could take to help a child victim.
Further, the Minister’s Family Commission, in collaboration with the CC&PA, will create family-friendly and educationally-interactive child-friendly spaces where there will be support for families with children who have developmental disabilities.
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