BCN Newsletter: 27 May  2013 

 

Welcome to the latest edition of the BCN Newsletter! 

 

In this edition we bring you two new publications addressing the use of institutional care for children:

  • Moldova: EveryChild has published a Program Review of the work it has done since 1994 toward deinstitutionalization, including important lessons and achievements.
  • Malawi: A study of the situation of children in institutional care by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Community Development, supported by UNICEF and the Better Care Network.
  • We also take a closer look at Child Maltreatment, and in particular Child Neglect.  Understanding better child neglect is critical to strengthening appropriate family care and preventing unnecessary separation. Neglect has been found to be the most prevalent forms of child maltreatment and yet has received remarkably little attention from researchers, policy makers or practitioners. We highlight a number of recent research studies, policy and practice resources with findings on the nature and prevalence of child neglect, the long-term health impacts of child maltreatment, and a ground-breaking study on the economic burden of child maltreatment in the United States. 
  •  Our Country Care Reviews continue with highlights on the Committee on the Rights of the Child's care related recommendations to Slovakia and Burkina Faso under the Optional Protocol to the CRC on the Sale of Children.  

And of course, we have the latest news, upcoming events, conferences, webinars and job opportunities! Questions? You can reach us at [email protected]. Thank you for your continual subscription and partnership in promoting positive and appropriate alternative care options for children!

  

All the best,

The BCN Secretariat

 

IN THIS ISSUE
Moldova: Deinstitutionalisation
Malawi: Situation of children in institutional care
Chronic Neglect: A Bulletin for Professionals
The Neglect of Child Neglect
The long term health consequences of physical, emotional abuse and neglect
USA: The economic burden of child maltreatment
In the Media: India, Kenya, United Arab Emirates, USA and Liberia
CRC Concluding Observations
New Webinar
IFCO's Osaka Conference
Consultancy and Job Postings
General Information
IN A FEW WORDS:
  
'"If we know of a case and do nothing then we fail as a people," said Dr Ahmad Abdulaziz Al Haddad, grand mufti and head of the Fatwa department at the Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department in Dubai. "And if we are not even aware that this problem exists then we are failing as a society."   
 
Grand mufti urges Emiratis to foster children abandoned in the UAE, The National, May 6th 2013.

 

 

NEW REPORT

EveryChild Moldova's Programme Experience: Improving Children's Lives through Deinstitutionalization  

This report documents the evolution of EveryChild/Partnerships for Every Child Moldova- since 1994, presenting the development of interventions to improve the lives of children through deinstitutionalization and identifying best practices that are relevant, useful, and replicable to other initiatives and organizations around the world. It documents the programmatic approach to deinstitutionalization as a model of good practice, and makes recommendations for stakeholders in Moldova toward achieving the closure of all institutions for children in the country by building on the country's work to date, including the practices modeled by EveryChild.

Moldova relied heavily on the institutionalization of children as a protection measure. Poverty and limited family support services at the community level led to placement of thousands of children from poor families and of children with disabilities in residential care. In 1995, the number of children under the age of 18 in residential institutions was 17,000 (1.2 %) out of the total population of 1,458,454 children between ages 0-18. By 2012, the number of children in residential institutions had dropped to 4,515 (0.6%) out of the total population of 784,000 children between ages 0-18 (Moldova's demographic environment is defined by a declining population, proportion of children and a high rate of migration). The report identifies key factors that made interventions effective, including innovative direct services, partnership with government, building capacity, lobbying and policy advocacy, collaborating, building evidence base, raising public awareness, and giving voices to children and their families. It also makes recommendations to address remaining challenges, including gaps in services, particularly in relation to foster care and the need to extend deinstitutionalization beyond children in the general boarding schools to children residing in baby homes, auxiliary schools and institutions for children with disabilities or health issues. 

 

To read the full report, please visit:

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details.asp?id=30974&themeID=1002&topicID=1017

 

NEW RESEARCH 

All Children Count: A Baseline Study of Children in Institutional Care in Malawi 

This study commissioned by the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Community Development and supported by UNICEF and the Better Care Network aims to describe the situation of children in institutional care and create a database containing all institutions in Malawi providing services for children requiring alternative care. Using a snowballing method, a total of 104 institutions were identified nationwide, including five types of care facilities- orphanages, special needs centers, church homes, transit care centers, and reformatory centers. The study found that the number of institutions had almost tripled between 2000 and 2010, and although government regulations require the registration of these institutions, about 40% were not registered. In addition, 52% of the institutions reported that they recruited children.

A total of 6,039 children in institutions were identified, 66% in orphanages. There were more boys (55%) in care than girls (45%) in all regions. 71% of children in institutions had lost one or both parents. Poverty, exacerbated by the death of one or both parents, was given as one of the major reasons for children being placed in institutions, with the surviving parent or other members of the family being unable to adequately care for the child. The study reviews findings on major care indicators, including admission, care planning, food and accommodation, staff ratio and training, sanctions and use of punishment, access to health care and funding. Most children reported being happy because they had access to services not available at home, but expressed a sense of loss for family and community. Frequent problems such as limited contact with families, an absence of management committees as required under government regulations, poorly trained staff and a lack of regular complaint systems, as well as specific children's rights violations were identified as needing to be addressed. Disturbingly, the report identified 57 deaths of children in the institutions over the previous 12 months period, although no information as to causes was available.

 

To read the full report, please visit:  

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details.asp?id=30800&themeID=1001&topicID=1007 

 

FOCUS ON CHILD NEGLECT

 

Chronic Neglect: A Bulletin for Professionals

This Child Welfare Information Gateway bulletin for professionals discusses what chronic neglect is, and reviews ways to work with families experiencing it, including critical elements of successful casework practice, examples of what agencies are doing, and ways agencies can integrate child welfare approaches to chronic neglect with prevention and early intervention efforts. Children who experienced neglect in the US make up approximately three quarters of all children identified as maltreatment victims. Additionally, cases involving neglect are more likely to recur and tend to so more quickly than abuse cases. Chronic child neglect is defined as a parent or caregiver's ongoing, serious pattern of deprivation of a child's basic physical, developmental, and/or emotional needs for healthy growth and development. 

 

Chronic neglect differs from incident-based neglect in terms of duration, frequency (e.g., number of reports), duration of need for services, and referrals for multiple types of maltreatment. Several parental stressors are associated with chronic neglect, including poverty, mental health issues, and substance abuse. Of all forms of maltreatment, neglect has the strongest relationship to poverty. This relationship is not causal but contributory-neglect is strongly associated with measures of socioeconomic disadvantage, which include welfare dependence, homelessness, low levels of education, and single-parent families-as well as limited income. The bulletin reviews the evidence on the impact of chronic neglect on children, as well as on society. It highlights the implications for child welfare agencies including the fact that approaches to neglect need to move away from incidence-based intervention and assessment and toward assessment of cumulative harm, with intervention and support aimed at the long-term. It draws on good practices that have been shown to work with families in the complex context of chronic neglect  that often involves families facing intergenerational issues. It identifies useful tools and resources available, including specialized training to build the competencies needed by caseworkers to work effectively in partnership with families and children affected. Two programs are also introduced as examples of promising interventions and evidenced-informed practices.

 

To read the full bulletin, please visit:

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details.asp?id=30978&themeID=1004&topicID=1029

   

The Neglect of Child Neglect

This article describes the results of a meta-analytic review aimed at providing an estimate of the prevalence of physical and emotional neglect by integrating prevalence figures from the body of research reporting on neglect. The authors conclude that neglect seems to be a neglected type of maltreatment in scientific research. This was apparent from the fact that the study could trace only a modest number of studies reporting on the prevalence of neglect: 16 for physical neglect including 59,406 participants, and 13 for emotional neglect including 59,655 participants. These numbers were strikingly low in comparison to a recently published meta-analysis on the prevalence of child sexual abuse (over 200 publications using self-report measures of the abuse for over 400,000 participants). Furthermore, the prevalence of neglect was always reported in combination with reports of the prevalence of child sexual, physical, and/or emotional abuse, indicating that studies on the prevalence of neglect were by-products rather than a primary interest. Also, the distribution of studies among geographical areas of origin of the sample was uneven with a large majority of samples originating from North America, no samples from South America, and only few from Asia, Australia, and Europe. The same applied to the level of economic development, with all physical neglect samples and a majority of the emotional neglect samples originating from countries labeled as high resource.

 

Given the dearth of studies investigating the prevalence of child neglect and given the severe consequences of neglect, the authors call for more studies with a primary focus on child neglect to be undertaken, particularly in low-resource countries. Despite these limitations, the current meta-analysis found a disturbingly high prevalence of physical neglect (163/1,000 cases) and emotional neglect (184/1,000 cases). More than 15 % of the children are estimated to suffer from neglect. As a result, the authors call for the development of programs to support parents and children to be made available on a large scale to reach the millions of families with children suffering from neglect. Although more studies need to be conducted, they point out that that this high percentage of neglected children is a sufficiently solid evidence base for social policies to make life for these children and their families more bearable, in accordance with children's rights.

 

To read the full article, please visit:

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details.asp?id=30979&themeID=1004&topicID=1029

 

The Long-Term Health Consequences of Child Physical Abuse, Emotional Abuse and Neglect   

This study conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of scientific literature to summarize the evidence for associations between individual types of non-sexual child maltreatment and outcomes related to mental and physical health. This review is a first of its kind to demonstrate in aggregate quantitative effects the knowledge behind the associations, using 124 studies mostly from Western Europe, North America, Australia, and New Zealand. Eighty percent of child maltreatment is perpetrated by parents or parental guardians, and poverty, mental health problems, low educational achievement, alcohol and drug misuse, having been maltreated oneself as a child, and family breakdown or violence between other family members have all been shown to be important risk factors for parents abusing their children.

 

Statistically significant associations were observed between physical abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect and depressive disorders, drug use, suicide attempt, and sexually transmitted infections, and risky sexual behavior. Physical abuse and neglect were also associated with a doubling of the odds of childhood behavioural and conduct disorders. There is also emerging evidence that neglect in childhood may be as harmful as physical and emotional abuse. The authors review the evidence on some of the possible mechanisms that may explain these observed associations, including the fact that neurobiological development can be physiologically altered by maltreatment during a child's early years, which can in turn negatively affect a child's physical, cognitive, emotional, and social growth, leading to psychological, behavioural, and learning problems that persist throughout the life course. They also discuss the implications of their findings and recommend that all forms of child maltreatment should be considered important risks to health with a sizeable impact on major contributors to the burden of disease in all parts of the world. The awareness of the serious long-term consequences of child maltreatment should encourage better identification of those at risk and the development of effective interventions to protect children from violence. They suggest that evidence-based systemic interventions that improve parenting strategies and family functioning may be more effective and economical than attempting to treat the wide-ranging deleterious health outcomes in adulthood that arise from maltreatment in the early years of life. 

 

To read the full article, please visit: 

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details.asp?id=30977&themeID=1004&topicID=1029

 

The Economic Burden of Child Maltreatment in the United States and implications for Prevention 

This paper presents new estimates of the average lifetime cost per child maltreatment (CM) victim in the United States and aggregate lifetime costs for all new cases of CM incurred in 2008 using an incidence-based approach. In 2008, US state and local child protective services (CPS) received 3.3 million reports of children being abused or neglected and an estimated 772,000 children were classified by CPS authorities as being maltreated. Three-quarters of victims (75%) had no history of prior victimization. Although the number of confirmed cases has decreased over the past several years, researchers argue that CPS data grossly underestimate the total incidence of CM. A nationally representative study of children aged 0-17 reported that 10.2% of US children experienced some form of maltreatment in 2008. CM has been shown to have lifelong adverse health, social, and economic consequences for survivors. Given the high prevalence of CM and the many negative short- and long-term consequences of CM, the economic costs of CM may be substantial. Using the median age for CM victims in 2008 which is 6 years old, the authors calculated the average lifetime cost per victim, which was defined as the sum of short-term health care costs, long-term health care costs, productivity losses, child welfare costs, criminal justice costs, and special education costs.

 

Using an incidence-based approach, the lifetime economic burden of CM resulting from an estimated 579,000 new cases of nonfatal CM and 1,740 cases of fatal CM that occurred in the United States in 2008 is approximately $124 billion. On average, the lifetime cost is estimated to be $210,012 per victim of nonfatal CM and $1,272,900 per victim of fatal CM. Comparing these costs to that of other high profile public health problems, such as lifetime costs of stroke per person ($159,846) or the total lifetime costs associated with type 2 diabetes (between $181,000 and $253,000 per case), the authors argue that CM costs and prevalence are high enough for policy makers to justify allocating resources to effective prevention and mitigation strategies. Furthermore, they also suggests that a promising array of prevention and response programs have great potential to reduce the substantial economic burden of CM and that the benefits of prevention will likely outweigh the costs for effective programs. 

  

To read the full article, please visit:

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details.asp?id=30980&themeID=1004&topicID=1029

  

IN THE MEDIA

  

India: Central Adoption Resource Authority to open 8 new child adoption centers. The Times of India, 4th April 2013 
 
This news article reports that the Central Adoption Resource Authority in India is planning to open 8 new adoption centers in Bihar, acting on the recommendation of the state authorities, to respond to increasing numbers of domestic adoptions. There are three legal specialized child adoption agencies in the state. Most of the children adopted are boys and children without disabilities, although higher numbers of abandoned girl children are reported by adoption agencies than boys. 
 
According to the State's Adoption Resource Authority (SARA), it receives 10 to 15 applications every month for adoption but 80 to 90 per cent of the willing parents apply for a male child. Many of them are parents with a daughter, divorcees, or widows. 
Twenty- four children were legally adopted in 2012 through SARA, mostly boys, and one girl was adopted in February this year. Although Adoption Guidelines from the Central Adoption Authority state that the adoption process should be completed within two months after the 'home study' process, an official from SARA explained that due to court procedures, there were couples who waited to adopt a child for as long as four years.  The article also reports that these adoption centers receive children from economically poor parents who hope to provide their children with a better future, as well as unmarried women, women staying at short stay homes, or prison inmates who can no longer take care of their children. According to adoption officials, Indian parents are generally reluctant to adopt children with disabilities.
 
To read the full article, please visit:

Kenya: Is Adoption the Answer to Kenya's Abandoned Children? Capital Broadcasting Network, 17th April 2013.

 

This news article highlights the increasing trend towards domestic adoption in Kenya despite the country's stringent laws and procedures. Although adoption was the last option for childless couples in the past in Kenya, domestic adoption is on the increase, in part due to a waning of the cultural stigma attached to it. The Associate Director of one of four agencies in Kenya authorized by the government to facilitate adoption explains that this increase may also be the result of a changing lifestyle, as well as greater financial independence by those who can afford adoption. According to the Adoption committee secretariat, Kenya had between 30 and 40 international adoptions in 2011, constituting 20% of all adoptions, compared to Ethiopia that processed over 4,000 adoptions in the same year, nearly all them international. The article discusses the comprehensive requirements and procedures involved in adopting children in Kenya under the Children Act of 2011 and the Adoption Regulation of 2005, a process that is overseen by the National Adoption Committee. Only the High court has the right to grant adoptions in Kenya and the court process entails three hearings, including investigative reports by the children's department, the adoption centre and an independent guardian appointed by the court. 

 

To read the full article, please visit:

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details_news.asp?id=30946&themeID=1002&topicID=1014

  

United Arab Emirates: Grand mufti urges Emiratis to foster children abandoned in the UAE. The National, 6th May 2013.

 

The grand mufti and head of the Fatwa department at the Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department in Dubai called on Emiratis to come forward to foster abandoned children. Speaking at a forum to discuss children of unknown parentage, Dr Al Haddad said that although adoption is not permitted in Islam, fostering is a moral obligation.  Each emirate had its own laws on the matter until a federal law was implemented last year. The new law provides citizenship and all the rights of a UAE citizen to any child born to an Emirati mother and unknown father, and any child born in the country whose parents' identity cannot be determined. 

 

Sharjah was the first emirate to implement laws to protect the rights of children with unknown parentage in 1985, and these were ratified in 2006. In Sharjah, the Department of Social Services sheltered 140 children and found foster homes for 165 in the same four-year period. Between 2008 to 2012, Dubai's Latifa Hospital has placed 41 abandoned children in new homes while giving shelter to another 28. During the same period, at least 390 children in the emirate were placed in foster care by other agencies. 


To read the full article, please visit:

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details_news.asp?id=30954&themeID=1002&topicID=1013


 An earlier article in the National also highlighted the new fostering rules adopted by Dubai:

 
Dubai unveils new fostering rules for care of abandoned children, The National, April 3rd 2013.

The Community Development Authority (CDA) in Dubai has announced new fostering rules for the care of abandoned children. Professional foster mothers will look after children in groups of up to six children in a family setting until more permanent surrogate families can be found for them. An official responsible for overseeing alternative families for CDA, explained that, "if for any reason any child cannot find a surrogate family, this alternative family should play that role for as long as needed."  The Government is also encouraging de-facto foster parents caring for abandoned children to come forward to legalize the status of these children, to protect the children and secure their rights. The authorities hope to encourage Emiratis in Dubai to offer permanent homes to abandoned children to ensure the children grow up in a family environment. 

  

To read the full article, please visit:

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details_news.asp?id=30971&themeID=1002&topicID=1013
 
USA: 

Orphan Fever: The Evangelical Movement's Adoption Obsession, Mother Jones, May/June 2013 Issue.

 

In this article, Kathryn Joyce, the author of a recently published book on the issue entitled The Child Catchers: Rescue, Trafficking, and the New Gospel of Adoption, chronicles the rapidly growing evangelical movement for international adoption in the United States since 2005, and its impact on children and their families with a particular focus on Liberia. She follows the story of four children adopted by a Tennessee family from Liberia, a country that had just emerged from a 14-year civil war, and the serious struggles they faced with their new adoptive families. Joyce explores what she calls "orphan theology", a movement that has taken hold among mainstream evangelical churches in the US, whose members are urged to adopt as an extension of pro-life beliefs, a way to address global poverty, and a means of spreading the Gospel in their homes. 

 

To read the full article, please visit:

 

The article is accompanied by charts that illustrate the trends in international adoptions from Liberia, Kyrgyzstan, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Haiti to families in the United States. 
 

COUNTRY CARE REVIEWS

Care related Concluding Observations by

the Committee on the Rights of the Child

We continue our focus on the care relevant Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child under 

the Optional Protocol to the CRC on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (OPSC) during its 62nd Session held from the 14 January to 1 February, 2013.

 

To access the Concluding Observations on Slovakia (OPSC), please visit:

http://www.crin.org/BCN/details.asp?id=30938&themeID=1001&topicID=1006

 

To access the Concluding Observations on Burkina Faso (OPSC), please visit:

http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details.asp?id=30937&themeID=1001&topicID=1007

  

 

The 63rd session of the Committee on the Rights of the Child is due to take place from the 27th May to the 14th June 2013 in Geneva. The country reports that will be examined are:

  • Armenia (CRC and Optional Protocol on the sale of children and Optional Protocol  on children in armed conflict) 
  • Guinea Bissau (CRC)
  • Israel (CRC)
  • Rwanda (CRC and Optional Protocol on the sale of children and Optional Protocol  on children in armed conflict)
  • Slovenia (CRC)
  • Uzbekistan (CRC and Optional Protocol on the sale of children and Optional Protocol  on children in armed conflict)

To access country reports and more information about this session, please visit:

http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/crcs63.htm

 

NEW WEBINAR

 

"Connecting People, Transforming Lives"

Electronic Launch of the Global Social Service Workforce Alliance

 

June 6 and June 7, 2013  

Learn more about the Global Social Service Workforce Alliance during a one-hour webinar, hear about the importance of this initiative to support those who work with vulnerable children and families, and discover how you can become involved in ways that best fit your current personal, professional and organizational situation.


The Alliance vision is to work toward a world where a well-planned, well-trained and well-supported social service workforce effectively delivers services that improve the lives of vulnerable populations. In short, our aim is: improve the workforce, improve lives. To realize this vision, we need potential Alliance members like you to join and to engage with leaders and colleagues to help strengthen the workforce through advancing knowledge, exploring shared issues and promising practices and becoming strong advocates.

In practice, this means:

  • Connecting with others facing similar challenges
  • Contributing your best ideas and best practices to address these challenges
  • Learning about creative initiatives being undertaken by others
  • Joining with others to advocate for needed changes and resources at both the global and country levels
  • Being part of a global movement to strengthen this key workforce
  • Increasing your impact, amplifying your voice.

For further information about this webinar, please visit: http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/Events.asp

 

NEW EVENT

 

 Fully sponsored youth places to IFCO's Osaka international conference

 

The International Foster Care Organization (IFCO) has announced that it has fully sponsored places for young people to attend its next international conference in Osaka in September 2013. The award covers all travel, accommodation and associated costs towards participation in IFCO2013. The age limit is within the youth membership criteria of IFCO (28 or under but over 18).

 

The closing application date for submitting applications is 27th June 2013.

 

For further information, please visit:

http://www.ifco.info/news-and-blogs/latest-news/fully-sponsored-youth-places-for-osaka-apply-online-by-27-june

 

 
CONSULTANCY AND JOB POSTINGS

Consultancy Assignment: Better Care Network (BCN) Gatekeeping Study 

  

The Better Care Network (BCN) and UNICEF are seeking a consultant or institution to examine the evidence on the role gatekeeping is playing in ensuring more appropriate and effective decisions and services for children deprived of appropriate parental care in a range of country contexts. Using a desk review approach, this consultancy will produce a new BCN Working Paper that will include a number of country case studies, contrasting different approaches and models of gatekeeping adopted in countries with established state structures overseeing public care for children with those of countries relying primarily on informal alternative care. 

  

The work is due to be undertaken between July and September 2013 for a total of 35 working days. This includes time for consultation with experts and revisions.  Research paper must be finalized and disseminated by the end of September 2013. 

  

Please note the revised application deadline of 21st June 2013.

  

For the terms of reference and instructions on how to apply, please visit: http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/JobBoard.asp

  

 

UNICEF Request for Proposal: Regional Knowledge and Leadership Agenda 1 on Child Care System Reforms

  

The UNICEF Regional Office for Central and Eastern Europe/Commonwealth of Independent States (CEE/CIS), in the framework of its current Regional Knowledge and Leadership Agenda area 1 (RKLA1), the Child's right to a Family Environment, invites you to submit a proposal to conduct a multi-country evaluation of results achieved through child care system 2005-2012.

 

Please refer to the Terms of Reference by using the following link (http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details_news.asp?ID=30850&themeID=1001&topicID=1008) for further details related to the background, context, rationale, objectives, scope and focus, research questions, process and methodology, required qualifications, accountabilities, deliverables and time frame of the evaluation.

  New application deadline is June 3, 2013 at 6:00pm (Geneva time) 

  

 

UNICEF Request for Proposal: Regional Knowledge and Leadership Agenda 2 on Juvenile Justice System Reforms

  

The UNICEF Regional Office for Central and Eastern Europe/Commonwealth of Independent States (CEE/CIS), in the framework of its current Regional Knowledge and Leadership Agenda area 2 (RKLA2), Justice for Children: Enabling justice systems to respect and protect child rights, invites you to submit a proposal to conduct a multi-country evaluation of the impact of juvenile system reforms on children in conflict with the law 2006-2012.

 

Please refer to the Terms of Reference by using the following link (http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details_news.asp?ID=30851&themeID=1001&topicID=1008) for further details related to the background, context, rationale, objectives, scope and focus, research questions, process and methodology, required qualifications, accountabilities, deliverables and time frame of the evaluation.

New application deadline is June 3, 2013 at 6:00pm (Geneva time) 

  

  

Save the Children: Senior Specialist, Child Protection

  

The Senior Specialist, Child Protection, provides technical assistance to ensure quality child protection (CP) programs, with a priority for support to programs in Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Eurasia. Technical assistance will be provided in development and emergency contexts to develop, implement, improve, and evaluate child protection programs, and contribute to program learning and innovation. He/she will lead on child protection proposal development for supported countries. The Senior Specialist will contribute to child protection strategic directions and plans with a particular emphasis on reducing harmful child labor. The individual will develop and maintain key external partnerships with the other Save the Children US departments, other Save the Children members, donors, and others to advance and expand our work for children.

  

Requirements: Masters degree in related field (social work, psychology, child development, education, sociology, anthropology, public health), ability to travel, Spanish language proficiency.

  

Location: Washington D.C preferred. Would consider Latin America/Caribbean or Middle East 

 

To learn more about the responsibilities and requirements of this position, and to submit an online application, please visit: https://ch.tbe.taleo.net/CH07/ats/careers/requisition.jsp?org=SAVETHECHILDREN&cws=1&rid=1678 

  

  

UNICEF Program Performance - Protecting Children from Violence

  

UNICEF's Evaluation Office is seeking Expressions of Interest (EOI) from qualified institutions (consultancy firms, universities, etc.) for the provision of services to complete an independent Comprehensive Evaluation of UNICEF's Strategies and Programme Performance with regard to Protecting Children from Violence.

 

The evaluation will cover the period 2009-2013 and focus on UNICEF's global Child Protection Strategy and current Medium-Term Strategic Plan as well as on country-level programming (6-8 case studies). In addition, it will include a review of regional strategies in two to three regions where region-specific child protection strategies have been launched.


Please see the following link for more details and to access the EOI form: http://bettercarenetwork.org/BCN/details_news.asp?ID=30953&themeID=1004&topicID=1029

 

Application deadline is June 10, 2013

 

GENERAL INFORMATION

 

 

The newsletter participants, currently 3,269 in total, are working on issues related to the care and support of vulnerable children across Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and the Americas.  The purpose of the newsletter is to enable members to exchange information on matters of mutual concern. If you would like to share a document, raise a specific issue, or reach out in any other way to the Network, please send the information to us at [email protected].  In the interest of keeping messages consolidated, we will manage announcements on the newsletter and send out a few messages each month.

 

We would like to involve as many people as possible who are concerned with better care issues in the Network. Please advise anyone who would like to be added to the newsletter to send us a message at [email protected] with"newsletter request" in the subject line. Alternatively, visit the homepage of the Better Care Network website at http://www.bettercarenetwork.org and click on the upper right box where it says, "click here to sign up for our email announcements." Thank you.