Government of Malawi says it is intensifying efforts to strengthen family-based child care systems by scaling up child reintegration programmes nationwide and expanding foster care and adoption services within the Child Protection Management Information System.
Deputy Minister of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare, Martha Mzomera Ngwira, disclosed this during the ongoing regional conference on Family-Based Care and Placement in Livingstone, Zambia.
Ngwira said Malawi remains committed to building a child protection system where no child grows up unnecessarily outside a family environment.
“Our commitment is clear, to build a system where every child is given the opportunity to thrive in a safe, nurturing and supportive home,” she said.
She noted that Malawi’s child care reforms are anchored in a strong legal and policy framework aligned with international standards, which stipulate that institutional care should only be used as a last resort.
Ngwira further said government is currently reviewing the Child Care, Protection and Justice Act, while reforms to the Adoption of Children Act are also underway to ensure the laws remain responsive to emerging child protection challenges.
According to Ngwira, government has since introduced various programmes aimed at strengthening vulnerable households.
Meanwhile, Zambia’s Minister of Tourism, Rodney Sikumba, expressed concern over the growing number of children in the region who are being raised outside proper family environments due to poverty, violence and insecurity.
He has since urged the region ministers, senior government and NGO representatives to come up with mechanisms that will help children grow in homes where they will be given love, care and protection.
The conference, which runs from May 6 to 8, has brought together government officials, development partners and child welfare stakeholders from across the region under the theme: “Empowering Governments to Reform Child Welfare.”
By Doreen Sonani
