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Posted by Kerry Kubilius Dec 26, 2007 |
Orphans in Eastern Europe, or children who have been abandoned an neglected, have traditionally been sent to orphanages to await the slim chance that they may be adopted by a loving family. In Moldova, children are now given a second option - to be fostered in one of a few dozen foster homes in the country.
While the project seems small, this is a big step for the region's poorest country.. Moldova has one of the highest rates of children in orphanages in Eastern Europe - introducing the practice of fostering means that some children will be able to avoid the psychological damage that can occur from living in an institution.
A UK-based organization, EveryChild, is helping to provide support for foster families and to smooth the path to success for the foster care program in Moldova. Hopefully, Moldova's approval of foster care will encourage other Eastern European nations to abandon their decades-long practice of sentencing children without proper familial care to lives in institutions, where prospects of bright futures - and the hope that they will be taken in by new parents - fades a little more with each passing day.