A resolution "welcoming" the Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 20 November 2009, in connection with the 20th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. This momentous day marked a culmination of years of discussions and negotiations led by the Government of Brazil, in partnership with Group of Friends and civil society. Better Care Network and its partners wholeheartedly supported this process. BCN is now working to disseminate and support the implementation of the Guidelines at the country, regional and international levels. (For a history of the development of the Guidelines see below).
The Guidelines provide further guidance regarding the definition of the relationship between parental care and the child’s family environment, goals for alternative care, and the criteria for decisions of alternative care placements. The Guidelines target both policy and practice with specific regard to the protection and wellbeing of children deprived of parental care or who are at risk of being so.
The full text of the resolution and the Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children is available on our website in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian.
“Since the adoption of the Guidelines, the Committee has been making full use of the principles and objectives established in the Guidelines when examining the reports of States Parties to the Convention and in formulating its observations and recommendations to them.”
Jean Zermatten, Chairperson UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, 31 October 2012 (Introduction to Moving Forward)