CARA shares mounting concerns about a trend towards institutional care for children, through a growing number of Southeast Asia children's homes. Mostly, children in these homes are not orphans but live in a home due to family poverty.  Our partners have seen the trouble teenagers experience as they leave institutions and try to find their way in life. Thailand children’s homes spend approx. 3,000 Thai Baht per child per month, much more than needed to support families to take care of their own children.

 

Our partners Border Health Initiative and One Sky Foundation are part of a network of projects working to change this situation; promoting the idea that institutional care should be the very last option. While advocating for alternatives to institutional care, BHI and One Sky put their words into practice by providing support to families who would otherwise put their children in homes. Projects include:

 

• Counselling and social welfare support for families in trouble

• Financial support for children to stay in school

• Micro-loan and income generation opportunities.

• Together BHI and One Sky operate a broom-making business, providing employent to the families of at-risk children at wages above the market rate.

 

Watch this video from our partner One Sky to find out more about the families they support.