Reforming child institutional care in the Post-Soviet bloc: The potential role of family-based empowerment strategies

In countries of the former Soviet Union (fSU), children in institutional care are one of the most vulnerable groups. Placing institutionalized children in a safe family environment could potentially improve children's psychosocial functioning and reduce risks of poor developmental outcomes. This paper provides a review of current deinstitutionalization efforts in the region, identifies potential challenges, describes the need for economic empowerment interventions and outlines directions for future research. In the fSU region, a significant number of children are placed in institutions because of poverty related issues. Family reunification is included among the key strategies for reforming the institutional care system in the region. However, financial support provided to low-income families within the deinstitutionalization programs is below the minimal costs of living. Few interventions aimed at deinstitutionalization have explicitly focused on addressing family poverty, one of the main reasons for institutionalization in the region. More research is warranted to examine the added benefits of integrating family-level economic empowerment strategies in deinstitutionalization efforts that could lift biological parents out of poverty, help them reunite with their children and reduce the risk of future institutionalization.