Ukraine President commits to support for families

President of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, showed his support for Deinstitutionalisation this week as he committed to establishing centres for social support across the country.

This announcement follows a visit by the President to the the Ray of Hope Centre in Makariv – a centre established by NGO Hope and Homes for Children to provide services to support families in the community  following the closure of the nearby Barvinok Institution.

Immediately after the visit, the President instructed Ukraine’s Ombudsman for Children’s Rights and the Head of the Kiev State Administration to organise a meeting of all of the heads of administrations across Ukraine to plan the establishments of centres based on this model across the country.

Under the instruction, the Minister of Finance must draw up a system of financing the construction and functioning of such centres.

According to the President, the main objective of these centres is to prevent separation of children from their parents, to create the conditions in which no child from the area would be sent to orphanages and to provide the necessary protection and support for all children to grow up in a family.

“The Ray of Hope creates conditions for the protection of the future of children and young mothers, so that every child can have a family,” the President noted after his visit on Friday.

“We must put a stop to orphanages which damage children. If children suffer, the state suffers,” he said.