Republic of Moldova
Moldova, one of the poorest countries in Europe, also has one of the highest rates of institutionalisation. It’s estimated that nearly 10,000 children live in institutions. Most are not orphans, but are there because they have been separated from their parents, primarily as a result of poverty, coupled with a lack of community based services for children with disabilities.
We have been working with the Moldovan government since 2006 to resolve the situation. In April 2008, we signed a joint action plan with the Prime Minister, agreeing to implement a number of projects that will reform the country’s social protection, health and education services for vulnerable children and their families. This deinstitutionalisation process is exceedingly complex and will involve placing thousands of children in much more appropriate forms of care and, where possible, back with their birth or extended families.
We are helping the government in three ways. First, we have identified three pilot counties for the de-institutionalisation process. We work closely with the local officials concerned, and have helped them to draw up five year strategies for the development of community based services that will replace the institutional system. As a next step we have provided support in developing the tools and procedures to ensure that the needs of each individual child are assessed and planned for according to best practices. Over the coming months and years we will assist the local authorities to set up their new services and to place children back into families, in the heart of the community, where they belong. Assisting three counties to implement high quality programmes of change acts as a demonstration model for what is possible across the whole country, providing a catalyst for future change of the entire system.
It is a complex process which has already had some surprising results. For example, local social workers who were involved in a comprehensive assessment of need in their community were astonished to find that some children in the community had not been officially registered at birth. This lack of legal identity can leave children vulnerable and even at particular risk of trafficking. Local social workers have already improved birth registration procedures as a result.
Closing down some of these institutions also involves pioneering Inclusive Education programmes for the children. Many children in Moldova, as in other countries in Central and Eastern Europe, are in residential facilities simply because they have mild learning difficulties and special needs education is not provided in the local community. As part of the process of change, some personnel currently working in the institutions will be retrained to work as special needs teachers and teaching assistants working in mainstream schools, so that the children can attend school every day in their community, but go home to their parents in the evening, like any other child.
We are also working with the Ministry of Health to reduce infant mortality, in line with achieving Millennium Development Goal number 4. However there are still significant numbers of babies who die each year at home – for social as well as health reasons. So, backed by the government, we have completed a national research project into the causes of infant mortality at home. On the basis of the findings, we are helping to create the mechanism for cooperation between local health and social services that will ensure doctors, community nurses and social workers intervene to support vulnerable families, preventing deaths due to neglect, abuse or a lack of information on the health needs of young babies.
Finally, we are supporting the government to develop a system of standards, monitoring and inspection of all social services for children and families. This system is essential to ensure that all children receive the same high quality standard of care.
For enquiries about our work in Moldova, please contact Irina Malanciuc, Country Director or Natalia Rotaru, Communications Specialist.
