The Cambodia Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation launched its “Policy on Alternative Care for Children” to further prioritise the well-being of all children in Cambodia, including those whose circumstances require that they be cared for outside of a traditional family environment.
Held yesterday at the ministry, the event was presided over by Minister of Social Affairs Chea Somethy and Will Parks, UNICEF’s representative in Cambodia, along with 250 ministry officials and representatives from local and international NGOs.
The general objectives of the policy are to protect the rights of the child and to ensure the physical and psychosocial long-term development of orphans and other vulnerable children who are being cared for outside of a traditional family environment, while also ensuring access to health services, free education and psychosocial support for the child’s survival and development.