A congresswoman has launched a program to make the adoption of orphan and abandoned children smoother.
Taguig Rep. Pia Cayetano on Friday launched Taguig City’s Foster Care Orientation and Recruitment program which aims to encourage foster parenting among families in the city.
The institutionalization of foster care in the country as a preferred way of caring for abused, abandoned, or neglected children is mandated by Republic Act 10165 or the Foster Care Act of 2012.
The principal author and sponsor of RA 10165, Cayetano said she drew inspiration from her own experience as a foster parent and eventually as adoptive mom to her son, Rene Lucas Cayetano, 8.
“I wish all children will be.raised by good families, Cayetano said.
Cayetano lauded the Taguig city government, under the leadership of Mayor Lani Cayetano, for aspiring to be a model city in promoting foster care through its orientation and recruitment program for foster parents.
“I worked on the Foster Care Act for quite some time until it became a law. We really need to see it working in our local government units,” she said.
RA 10165 states that in most cases, foster care is more beneficial than institutional care, in that it provides children with the proper attention and love that can only be provided in a family setting.
For her part, the congresswoman underscored the need to encourage more Filipinos to consider being foster families and going through the screening and licensing process of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
According to the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, about 1.8 million Filipino children are abandoned or neglected due to several reasons, including extreme poverty, natural disasters, and armed conflicts.
On the other hand, the DSWD 2017 annual report showed that only 5,819 children were placed in residential care facilities run by the agency. The rest were either placed under institutional care or ended up on the streets.
Apart from the launch of the orientation and recruitment program, the congresswoman, together with Mayor Cayetano, also witnessed the christening of three babies under the care of the Taguig Lingap Center, the city’s temporary shelter for children at risk and the elderly.
Cayetano is currently working with the center to link them with the Taguig-Pateros District Hospital milk bank.