—far-flung, riverine communities urged to adopt foster care system

ACROSS the world, varying reasons have forced children to either seek refuge or be placed in refuge, and this is no different in Guyana where some 222 children are currently within the foster care system, which has 128 foster parents. Minister of Human Services and Social Security, Dr. Vindhya Persaud, in a statement to commemorate National Foster Care Month 2021, which is observed annually in May, said some 79 children have been placed in non-biological families and 143 are in kinship care. Considering the number of children in foster care, Minister Persaud said there is need for more persons to “step up to the plate” and foster children.
“Children are blessings from God— little souls who need to be cherished, nurtured, and guided in the right direction. With proper parental attention and control, children can grow up to lead productive lives and make rich contributions to their families and our country as a whole,” the minister was quoted as saying.

Further, she said: “What about those children who lack such parental guidance in their lives? Our world is replete with the consequences that can occur as a result of lack of guidance and many times absence of parental presence.” It is for this reason that Dr. Persaud expressed her gratitude to foster parents who have opened up their hearts and homes to children in need of quality family-based care. While the figures released by the minister reflect that persons are willing to become foster parents, so far as Georgetown and a few other places are concerned, she explained that the real interest, in promoting this National Foster Care Month, is to have the “buy-in” of persons from outlying regions, such as those far-flung and riverine communities. “At the moment, in order to work with the families and make things right for the children, we have to bring them to Georgetown. We are pleased to say that we are working to change this.

“During this month, officers of the Childcare and Protection Agency are heavily promoting foster care across the regions, explaining how our programmes work and how individuals could be part of this rewarding and positive experience of being a foster parent,” Dr. Persaud noted in her statement.
National Foster Care Month is being observed this year under the theme: “Foster Care as a Support for Families, not a Substitute for Parents.”
“We hope that at the end of this month there would be increased awareness of the programme and families in the hinterland regions would sign on to be foster parents, all in an effort to have the service available to all our children across the country,” Minister Persaud said.

The Minister committed, on behalf of the ministry, to raising the level of awareness of their Foster Care Programme, and to recognise the important role and dedication of foster parents. She stressed the need to honour foster parents for their time and commitment in being there for the children within their care.
“Even as you continue to care for our young ones, we urge you to be willing to work towards helping the children to be reunited with their biological families. We want to remind you that while foster care offers continued family-based care, support, guidance and love to a child who has to be separated from his/her biological family, it is only a temporary arrangement until the child can safely be returned home. Once again, thank you very much for your efforts,” the Minister’s statement concluded.