Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Florence Bore has said privately owned children’s homes in the country would be regulated in a bid to tame child trafficking in the institutions.
CS Bore while speaking in Nakuru on Saturday, October 7 pointed out that there were cartels hindering the plan to tame child trafficking, adding that they are a part of the illegal scheme.
Moreover, the CS stated that the government would implement a plan to strengthen laws on oversight that will see private orphanages working in a well-regulated space and bring down child-traficking cases.
“For these eight years, my thoughts are, let’s regulate, let’s oversight the private homes, let us see how many children they have, what are the records,” CS Bore said.
“We should have the records of these children so that we will allow them, knowing they have this number of children and the history of the children and what their future is,” she added.
Likewise, the CS said that the ministry will ensure that the safety of the children is enhanced by placing them in government owned children’s homes.
“By the end of eight years we should have all the children in government owned childrens’ home, or we are satisfied that they are in good hands,” she added.
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Plan to Phase Out Privately Owned Childrens’ Homes
The government had announced a ten-year plan to Phase out the privately owned children’s homes under the Care Reform Strategy in 2022.
Additionally, the state announced plans to phase out these children’s homes and orphanages, with the goal of reuniting children with their families and placing them in community-based care.
“Kenya is a signatory to the United Nations (UN) Convention and Protocols on the rights of children and coupled with local laws, family and community remain the best alternative for child upbringing.
This new Children’s Act supports the rights of children to grow up in families and communities,” Assistant Director in charge of Care and Reform at the Directorate of Children’s Services Jane Munuhe stated then.
In the new program, homeless or rescued children will be placed in government-identified foster homes.
CS Bore on Saturday, October 1, explained that most countries in the world had embraced the idea of foster parents and it had proved more successful than children’s homes.
“This process is being hailed as children are able to thrive best when raised in at a home,” she explained.
She added that temporary places of safety ensure a safe space for rehabilitation as the government continues the process of reintegration.
Care Reform
Care Reform is a global movement informed by over 80 years of research on the harm of institutional care to children
Further, it is backed by legal instruments and the Children’s Act 2022, which states the importance of family as the fundamental unit of social order and as the best environment to bring up a child.
The law emphasizes and prioritizes the best interests of the child. That a child thrives best when cared for in a family setting than an institution.
Child Fostering
In 2020, the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection (MoLSP), led by the National Council for Children Services (NCCS) embarked on the process of developing a National Care Reform Strategy that will guide the country in implementing a Care Reform Agenda.
According to Kenyan law, to be a foster parent, you must be a Kenyan residing in the nation, over the age of 25, and under the age of 65.
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Non-Kenyans who wish to be foster parents can also do so but after residing in the country for at least 12 months.
Those who wish to foster a child are supposed to visit the sub county children’s offices where they will be given an application form to fill.
After that, the officer will assess the individual as well as analyze the family to ensure that the youngster is adequately cared for.
If training is required, the kid will be placed in foster care and a certificate will be issued by the sub-county children’s officer.
