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Tens of thousands of children in India, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and other Asian countries are living as child Buddhist monks. Many are in temples and monasteries far from home and do not see their parents for months, even years. Some are as young as 6 years of age.
The aim of this article is to engage scholars, practitioners, child rights advocates, and others in a conversation around the rights and vulnerabilities of child Buddhist monks and children susceptible to being entrusted to monasteries to live as child monks. This group of children receives relatively little attention in…
The alarming prevalence of Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) across the globe demands scrutinization of the present mechanisms in place to protect children from abuse. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child acknowledges that the family is the natural environment for the development and well-being of children. However, historically, children throughout South Asia have suffered homelessness, neglect and deprivation due to factors such as broken homes, lack of financial resources, physical and sexual abuse, and the age-old tradition of migrating parents in search of a better life,…
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Malnutrition and mental disorders are the emerging problems among the children and adolescents worldwide especially among the children and adolescents in developing countries like Nepal.
Objectives: To assess malnutrition and psychosocial dysfunction among vulnerable children as well as to determine the association between malnutrition and psychosocial dysfunction among orphan and vulnerable children in Kaski district, Nepal.
Materials and Methods: The study carried out was cross sectional which was done among 302 children residing from 10 institutional…
In this video, Kate van Doore, founder of Forget Me Not and lecturer at Griffith University Law School, describes the process of 'paper orphaning,' a term coined to characterize how children are recruited and trafficked into orphanages to gain profits through international funding and orphanage tourism. The video was created for the 21-22 June 2017 Africa Expert Consultation for Violence Against…
Anna McKeon, consultant for the Better Volunteering Better Care initiative, presented at a launch event of a new report on orphanage volunteering from Next Generation Nepal. The presentation highlights the findings from the Better Volunteering Better Care project and considers potential next steps for addressing the issue of orphanage volunteering in Nepal.
This report from Family for Every Child and partners summarises research on children’s reintegration that took place in Mexico, Moldova and Nepal from 2011 to 2014. The purpose of this research was to explore the experience and process of reintegration of separated boys and girls in a variety of contexts, speaking to children, their families and other stakeholders at different stages of the reintegration process. In total, 83 children were spoken to across the three contexts. These children included those in institutional care (Moldova), those living in small-scale residential care following…
This report, published by the US Embassy in Nepal, includes a segment on human rights issues related to orphanage voluntourism and donors, child abuse in child care homes, and a lack of Government regulation of institutions.
Excerpt from pages 29-30 of the report:
“Institutionalized Children: Abuse and mistreatment in orphanages and children’s homes reportedly was common. An NGO working in this area estimated that approximately 10 percent of registered children’s homes met the minimum legal standards of operation. A 2013 study by CWISH similarly showed that few such homes in the…
In 2013 The Better Care Network and Save the Children UK began an inter-agency initiative to review and share existing knowledge on international volunteerism as related to the alternative care of children in developing countries. This initiative brings together key actors from across the child protection, education, corporate, faith-based and tourism sectors to share their respective experiences and identify global communication and engagement strategies to address the issue.
The purpose of this study was not to conduct formal academic research on the topic of volunteering in…
Abstract:
“This article argues that orphanage voluntourism fuels the displacement and trafficking of children from their families in Nepal and their unnecessary institutionalisation. It shows that the displacement of children from their families into institutions initially arose in response to forced conscriptions of children into the Maoist rebel army and a desire of the families for their children to have quality education. After the conflict ended, this phenomenon became more about a desire by the poor rural families to have their children educated and thus escape the poverty trap.…
This article provides a case study of a project to improve the health, safety, and development of children birth to 6 years old in a large orphanage in Nepal. Two interventions were conducted: improvement of physical infrastructure and training, mentoring, and support for caregiving staff. As a result of these interventions, positive outcomes in terms of children's health and development have been observed, including reduction of communicable diseases and increased social interactions with caregivers. As part of the new trainining initiative, the caregivers began to meet regularly to share…