Government to establish public children rescue centres

The government is working out plans of establishing its public children rescue centres away from the existing privately owned.

Cabinet Secretary for Labour and Social Protection Ms Florence Bore has noted, having state owned public rescue centres will impede child trafficking in the country.

The CS observed the existence of poor management and lack of proper monitoring of private rescue centres can be used by unscrupulous people to perpetuate child trafficking saying the government is keen to avert such criminal activities.

She stated the government in partnership with well-wishers will work out to have government managed rescue centres where children affected can be held for a while before integrated with families and the community.

The CS who visited Murang’a Rescue Centre which is owned by the Child Welfare Society of Kenya underscored the need to protect the rights of every child.

CS Florence Bore when she met the Staff and Children at the Child Welfare Society of Kenya Temporary Place of Safety. She said that the Government is working on the Deinstitutionalisation of Children. Deinstitutionalisation of Children is the process of reforming child care systems and closing down of orphanages and children’s homes and in place finding suitable homely placements for vulnerable children and support them in non-institutional ways.

She said members of the public have a responsibility to bring out cases of neglected or abandoned children in their areas.

Children held at rescue centres, the CS observed, are not supposed to stay for long saying at the centres are meant to hold them for a while before a solution is attained.

Bore added “at the rescue centres, the children are provided with basic needs and people of good will have been supporting educating those who have attained age of going to school. Currently more than 400 children held at rescue centres are in secondary schools.”

The CS lauded members of the public who have been supporting children held at rescue centres especially through paying off their school fees.

Irene Mureithi, Director of Murang’a Rescue Centre noted the facility in the recent past is congested, appealing for more resources to expand the institution.

Mureithi said they are working in collaboration with the government to integrate the children back into society saying the centre is just a temporary place to hold children for emergency cases.

Story by Joe Gathuya