Foster care and group homes are replacing Romania's old orphanages. But the fact remains that poor parents still can't afford to keep their children. By Darrell Harvey
Photos by David Ward

Unlike Canada where children are usually placed in government care for their protection, poverty forces Romanian parents to consider the unthinkable—give up their children because they simply cannot afford to raise them. A decade ago, such children would have grown up in large, dormitory-style state institutions. Those grim places are slowly being phased out, supplanted by family-type alternatives.

History of Orphanages
After the collapse of Communism in 1989, the world discovered more than 100,000 children living in deplorable conditions in the country's 650 state-run orphanages. There, inside crumbling buildings, naked and emaciated toddlers huddled on the cold springs of bare cots with no blankets or heat to warm them.

These children were the by-products of a social engineering scheme gone horribly wrong. Former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu had denied birth control to families in an effort to increase the workforce. When parents couldn't afford to raise such large families, he promised space in an orphanage.

Since Ceausescu's arrest and execution 15 years ago, Romania has tried to undo the damage leftover from his regime. At first, the new government spent millions renovating the large, dank, and crumbling buildings, only to see the neglect in the orphanages continue. Then the orphan rolls began to grow again in the mid-1990s as the country's economic situation worsened.

Closing Orphanages
Today, the government is radically altering the child protection system. Romania's accession to the European Union (EU) depends on it. In 2001, the EU warned it would shelve Romania's plans to join the trading bloc in 2007 unless the government drastically reduced the number of children in institutionalized care. The country's National Authority for Child Protection and Adoption closed 40 orphanages in 2002 and another 54 in 2003. The number of children residing in large institutions dropped from 52,000 in May 2001 to just over 32,000 in November 2003.

Foster care and Group homes
Most children are being transitioned from the large institutions into foster care and small-scale group homes. The new system aims to offer each child individualized attention in a loving, family-like environment. This includes more personal space and one-on-one with an adult caregiver.

Number of Children in Care
While the number of children in large orphanages declines, the total number of children in care has remained about the same over the past 15 years. More than 83,000 children are still in some form of state care and they keep coming. The main reason: poverty. Wages remain below 1989 levels as Romania continues to recover from the currency crisis of the late '90s. According to UNICEF, 30 per cent of Romanians live in poverty and 500,000 survive on less than a dollar a day.

World Vision's Response
Since Romania began closing large state-run orphanages, World Vision staff members have responded with a variety of programs.

• In 2002, Word Vision trained almost 400 foster parents. Foster mothers meet weekly to discuss concerns and receive advice from World Vision child welfare staff. Every foster home is visited monthly by a World Vision social worker.
• World Vision's three shelters for mothers and children in Romania helped more than 160 mothers in 2002. The staff members offer lessons in nutrition, homemaking, parenting, and life skills, and provide pre- and postnatal care for mother and baby. Staff also counselled 236 mothers to prevent child abandonment.
• World Vision helped almost 200 abandoned children reunite with their families in 2002.