Brussels, 07/06/2012 (Agence Europe) - “If the EU can regulate the living conditions of chickens, it should do more to support the de-institutionalisation of children. … The shocking fact is that, in some countries, EU funds are still being used to keep Dickensian-style institutions open”, Charles Abani, Managing Director of ARK (Absolute Return for Kids) has said.
In cooperation with Eurochild and Homes for Children, ARK sought to draw the attention of European decision-makers to this issue during a call for action at the European Parliament on Wednesday 6 June. These associations, which defend the rights of the child, are calling for better use of cohesion policy funds, when a number of member states pay part of the funds into childcare institutions. They suggest that solutions based on the family and the community should be favoured, and urge MEPs to maintain provisions along these lines in legislative proposals on cohesion policy for 2014-2020. “What is needed is not only targeted funding but also political direction from the EU on how to deploy these funds to reform childcare systems at member state level”, Abani stressed. (MD/transl.jl)