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This research on the institutionalization of children in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka was carried out by Save the Children with the support of the Department of Probation and Children Care Services and National Institute of Social Development. The study was aimed at examining the factors that cause families in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka to place their children in institutions. The study was also designed to develop recommendations for deinstitutionalization and family reintegration based on findings from the research, which are provided in this report.
Les forces économiques, sociales et politiques qui dirigent le Sri Lanka depuis quelques décennies exercent de fortes pressions sur les familles. Les enfants sont plus vulnérables aux risques comme l’abus et le délaissement, ce qui résulte en l’accroissement du placement en établissement. Depuis le tsunami, l’intérêt s’est également accru par rapport au soutien des enfants en établissement, bien que le gouvernement du Sri Lanka ait déclaré que les enfants ne seraient placés en établissement qu’en dernier recours. L’objectif global de l’étude était d’améliorer les connaissances par rapport à…
The Regional Strategic Framework for the Protection, Care and Support of Children Affected by HIV/AIDS provides guidance to the eight member States of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) for a consistent approach across South Asia to protect, care and support children affected by HIV/AIDS. Between 2.3 and 3.7 million people in the SAARC region are estimated to be HIV positive. HIV/AIDS affects children in all parts of the SAARC.
It locates children affected by HIV/AIDS within the broader group of children in difficult circumstances, and focuses on delivering an…
In Sri Lanka institutional care has become the sole option for children who do not receive adequate care when the family unit is challenged or destroyed by internal (parental loss or separation, parental conflict) or external (war, disaster and displacement) factors. The recourse to institutional care is frequently practiced to solve family problems not related to parental care. Poverty is also frequently cited as aajor contributory factor.
Most of the residential institutions in Sri Lanka are run by voluntary organizations, officially defined as “voluntary children’s homes”. Residential…
The goal of New Beginnings is, “Children affected by armed conflict and violence in the family or community are protected from further harm and supported in gaining safe access to family and/or government support, as appropriate, and social inclusion in the wider community.” Its strategic objectives are:
1. To enable children affected by armed conflict (e.g., former child soldiers, separated or displaced children, children who lost opportunities due to armed conflict) to be resettled and/or reintegrated into their families, schools, and communities.
2. In selected project areas, to…
This report, requested by the Ministry of Child Development and Women Empowerment and Save the Children in Sri Lanka, is largely based on a literature review and a two week visit to Sri Lanka. Its task is to suggest strategies in place of institutionalisation for children in need of care and protection and for child offenders, through alternative care and diversion. This report is not about coming up with innovatory solutions but rather looking at practical strategies to achieve the above ends that are acceptable, achievable and affordable without requiring any major legal reforms.…
Children’s institutions have been in existence in Sri Lanka since 1900. Although the Sri Lankan government recognizes the dangers of institutional care and the need for alternatives, little has been done to address these issues. This presentation presents research on the policy environment, the quality of institutional care, and the alternative care options available to children in Sri Lanka. The research aimed to map children’s institutions in four Sri Lankan provinces; determine the current quality of services and identify good practice; assess and identify gaps in existing policies,…
In large-scale emergencies, food aid is often one of the biggest and longest-running responses. Oxfam is concerned about the standardisation of such food-aid responses and its appropriateness in the current post-tsunami context. Where food is available, and markets functioning, cash is an appropriate alternative to food aid.
Oxfam is publishing this briefing note because it is concerned about challenging the bias towards food aid in the current design of relief responses, and to raise awareness and expertise among relief workers on cash-transfer programmes and local food purchase.…
Many agencies have been involved in implementing child sponsorship programmes in Sri Lanka for many years. Since the tsunami of December 2005, the number of organisations and individuals coming forward to support children and their families through sponsorship programmes has increased rapidly. It is therefore important that the child sponsorship programmes are coordinated and managed in ways that the protection, interests and needs of children are met. It is also important that child sponsorship programmes do not inadvertently deepen inequalities and conflicts within…
Principal findings of study revealed that institutionalization is becoming an option for families in difficult circumstances in the absence of alternative forms of care (for a summary of the key findings, click here). While government policies explicitly state that poverty should not be an admission criterion, 50% of children in voluntary institutions were there for poverty. Moreover, 80% of children in non-state institutions (generally termed “orphanages”) had at least one living parent…