1. Strengthening Families for an Enabling Childhood in Sri Lanka
Piratheepa Kumarasamy
Sponsorship Coordinator
SOS Children’s Villages, Sri Lanka

2. Strengthening Families for an enabling childhood in Sri Lanka
Special Considerations on :

3. Strengthening Families for an enabling childhood in Sri Lanka
Children with Disabilities

4. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka - Children with Disabilities in Sri Lanka

5. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka - Children with Disabilities in CCIs
(Source: Current Status of Child Care Institutions and Institutionalized Children in Sri Lanka – A Situational Analysis 2013)

6. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka - Children with Disabilities
What are the special considerations on children with disabilities while strengthening families?
Disability may easily leads children directly to institutional care
Out of 14,000 plus,1063 children are Special Need Children in CCIs
33% of children with disabilities are among in 414 CCIs

7. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka – Good practices
Special supportive packages for strengthen the families of children with disabilities by Gov & NGOs
Housing, Self Employment, Nutrition & Educational support ( SOS Children’s Village’s Family Strengthening Program), Free medical assistance, Disability Aid equipment
The Family Health Bureau (FHB)’s Child Development Manual provides knowledge to Public Health staff members on child development and monitoring, and on defect identification and development promotion.
Educational supports
25 Special Gov schools for severely disabled children
Nearly 704 special education units

8. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka – Good practices
3% of Government Vacancies should be filled by physically disabled person
Vocational Training & Rehabilitation Center- National Department of Social Services
10 Vocational Training & Rehabilitation Centers for young persons
1 Child Rehabilitation & Guiding Center ( CRC)

9. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka – Gaps & Challenges
Insufficient/lack of long term support for vulnerable families for their children with disability
Less awareness among the parents of disabled children about early identification and intervention support
Lack of referral mechanism and coordination in reunification/family strengthening process
No any specialized alternative care place for disabled children who has lost parental care
Lack of data & information on Disability
No any specialized alternative care placement

10. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka – The Need
Need awareness for both disabled parents and children with disabilities about early identification and intervention support.
Family Strengthening interventions is needed for parents with disabilities who's child is at risk of losing parental care
Policy level interventions are needed to increase the proportionality of provisions in strengthening families.
A Special follow-up mechanism is needed for institutionalized disabled children’s families to reintegrate
Family counseling in community level- Spiritual interventions towards ‘ Disabled child also GIFTED child not SINNED child
Remove the Stigma on disability in the communities

11. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka for an Enabling Childhood
Mental Health

12. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka – The Mental Health statistics
Mental disorders based on hospital admissions in Sri Lanka
Source: Annual Mental Health Bulletin 2016, Mental Health Directorate, Ministry of Health

13. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka – Existing Services for Mental Health
National Mental Health Program-Directorate of Mental Health
consultant psychiatrics- 80
Medical Officer of Mental Health 253
Psychiatric Nurse 23
Psychiatric Social Worker 62
Occupational Therapist 28
Facilities
Acute inpatient facilities in 22 districts
Alcohol Rehabilitation Centers - 9
Intermediate Care Units - 14
Community Support Centers - 19 (10/19 are in the Northern Province)

14. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka – Mental Health Services
Having very basic Mental Health Services
Mullaitivu ( one of severed war effected district) and Monaragala are having very basic services

15. Strengthening Families in Sri Lanka – Challenges in Mental Health
Inadequate MH services
Lack of Consultant psychiatrists
Lack of awareness about available MH services
Lack of coordination among cadres
Stigma and myths about mental illness
Unavailability of up-to-date data on mental illness
Non existing residential special school for mentally ill children
Good Practices
CSO initiatives to promote MH in communities, e.g. NEST
Residential therapeutic facilities for children, e.g. Reintegration Centre (Emerge Lanka), LEADS

16. Strengthening families in Sri Lanka for an Enabling Childhood
LGBTI people in general may face stigma and discrimination in housing, employment, and health care, in both the public and private sectors.

17. Strengthening families in Sri Lanka – Challenges on LGBT
Sri Lankan family law does not recognize same-sex marriages
Society accepts heterosexual persons only
Harassment and intimidation in public places.
Homosexuality is still considered a ‘mental illness’
Education and psychosocial support are non-existent when reintegrating LGBTQ children/youth with their families.
Lack of equal rights and facilities and respect to LGBT
LGBTI people in general may face stigma and discrimination in housing, employment, and health care, in both the public and private sectors.

18. Strengthening families in Sri Lanka – The Need
Sri Lankan laws should provide clear path for LGBT community
Awareness to field level government officers and parents about LGBT through media
LGBT issues should be discussed in Child Protection system
Good practices
Ministry of Health issues Gender Recognition Certificate
NGOs working with LGBT to rise voice for them: EQUAL GROUND, Heart2Heart and Family Planning Association.
Sri Lankan laws should allow the LGBT people to get the equal rights like others in all the aspects, such as identification & other legal documents

19. Strengthening families in Sri Lanka - Meaningful Child Participation
Are children informed or involved in decision making process?
Judge
SSO
CPO
Counselor
Doctor PO
Parent

20. Strengthening families in Sri Lanka - Challenges
Misconception about Child Participation
Adult centered participation
Cultural barriers and community dynamics
Focus and type of activities carried out in the clubs
Children are busy with result orientated education & lack of participation in activities
Institutionalized children have barriers in participating events

21. Strengthening families in Sri Lanka - Minimum Standards for Meaningful Child Participation
Child participation should be TRANSPERANT and INFORMATIVE
Child participation should be VOLUNTARY NOT COMPULSURY
CP Participation should be RESPECTFUL

22. Strengthening families in Sri Lanka - Spaces Where Child Participation occurs
Child Clubs
Children’s Council (DPCCS, Provincial, Schools, NGOs etc) –
Village Child Rights Monitoring Committees (VCRMCs)
Placement Committees
Case conference
LPI process for de-institutionalization

23. Concluding Remarks
Strengthening vulnerable families is an essential needed ACTION to prevent children from being separated due to disability/LGBTQ/mental health issues with themselves or their parents.

24. Thank you