The Challenge
Haitian families feel they often have no other option than to leave their child at an orphanage because they do not have the support needed in the challenges they face in raising a child. Many of the children who are placed in orphanages and other institutions have families who love them and want them, but they were born into families living in poverty with little or no support. In fact, 80% of children living in orphanages are not true orphans but have been separated from their families because of poverty and discrimination. Because of many unethical and poorly ran institutions and orphanages, many Haitian children have been abused and trafficked in their vulnerable state.
We believe there are two moving parts in caring for vulnerable children and in order to make real change it is necessary to address both. One is to preserve biological families in order to keep children in their family and out of orphanages, and the second is to protect and ethically care for children who have been orphaned or abandoned by pursuing a loving family for each one.
Domestic Foster Care
In July 2018, Children of the Promise worked alongside Haiti’s department of Child Protective Services (IBESR) in the launch of a Domestic Foster Care program in Northern Haiti. Children of the Promise works with IBESR in the placement of children into healthy foster families. To ensure children are placed in strong and supportive home environments, the program works with local churches to recruit and train foster families. All families go through a certification program to become a official foster care home.