Reforming the child care system in Uzbekistan
zero children in institutions by 2030
In Uzbekistan, large residential care services with hundreds of children are still a dominant alternative care option and not a measure of last resort, despite a recently adopted deinstitutionalization policy.
A UNICEF child protection assessment lists as the main reasons for placement of children into residential care poverty, family problems, migration, and divorce.
Official governmental data[1] show that in 2018 there were 26,532 children living in various types of residential institutions, of which the majority were children with disabilities.
"Children are often placed in closed institutions in case of disability, or when their families are financially insufficient. In such cases children are deprived of their right to grow up in a family environment", says Aliya Yunusova, the Ombudsperson for Children's Rights in Uzbekistan. "It is better to provide support to families which are in need and assist them with their children, instead of separating children from their family”.
In Uzbekistan, the rate of children living in residential care institutions is 255 per 100,000 child population, twice the global average. The largest proportion of children left without parental care are aged between 7 and 17 years, but an increasing share of children left without parental care is children below two years of age.
"Parents leave their children in institutions thinking that they will get everything needed over there, but this is not true. The child grows up isolated. S/he loses spiritual and cultural development”, says Diloram Tashmukhamedova, Vice Chairperson of the Committee on Youth, Culture and Sports of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
Therefore, UNICEF in collaboration with the Ombudsperson for Children's Rights and the Republican Centre for Social Adaptation of Children, and with the support of the Committee on Youth, Culture and Sports of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, launched a research "Mapping and data collection on children living in residential care” with an initial focus on Tashkent Region". This research aims to generate evidence to inform the reform of the child care system in Uzbekistan.
"We will not be able to reproduce the family atmosphere for children placed in closed institutions. Every child should grow up in a family”, says Davron Khidoyatov, Governor of Tashkent region.
To reduce the reliance on residential care for children, and to ensure that every child grows up in a family environment, which is proven to be best for children, a two-fold approach is needed. While preventive approaches directed at family preservation should be given priority, also sufficient family-based alternative care options, preferably in the child's community, need to be developed to prevent unnecessary admissions to and stays in residential care institutes.
In general, a shift from a 'one-placement-fits-all-approach' to more individualized responses is needed. So-called 'packages of care' are required to meet the diverse needs of children and their families in the community as well as the needs of children in alternative care.
"There is a wealth of evidence from decades of research that demonstrates that institutional care is detrimental to the development and wellbeing of children. Children, in particular young children, can experience significant delays in their emotional and physical development”, underlines Antonia Luedeke, Child Protection Specialist at UNICEF Uzbekistan.
UNICEF believes that every child has a right to grow and live in a family environment and welcomes the Presidential decision to expedite the reform of the child care system, including banning the creation of new residential care facilities for children and planning the gradual return of children accommodated in residential care facilities into their families and communities. The process of reintegration however needs to be well-planned and children and their families supported throughout the process.
[1] Official statistics provided by Goscomstat and administrative data collected from the line ministries for 2018, UNICEF.
