(AGENPARL) – mar 15 novembre 2022 PRESS RELEASE
A FAMILY FOR EVERY CHILD
Catholic Care for Children International launches its first website, inspired by
the vision of “a family for every child”
Comunicato stampa: scarica in [ITALIANO](https://www.uisg.org/files/allegatodocumento/2022/Press_Release_Website_Nov_16_IT.pdf)
Press release: download it in[ENGLISH](https://www.uisg.org/files/allegatodocumento/2022/Press_Release_Website_Nov_16_EN.pdf)
Catholic Care for Children International (CCCI) has launched [its first website](https://catholiccareforchildren.org), reflecting the deep commitment of Catholic Sisters worldwide to transforming the care of children. The commitment is rooted in the Gospel imperative to care for the most vulnerable and in Catholic social teaching, especially the dignity of the person. It is informed by the latest research in the social sciences and is aligned with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which recognizes a child’s right to grow up in a nurturing family environment.
Begun in Uganda, Kenya, and Zambia, CCCI was established in 2020 as a program of the International Union of Superiors General ([UISG](https://uisg.org)). CCCI’s mission is to support the Sister-led movement to reduce the need for care in institutions, prevent family separation, and provide alternatives enabling children to grow up in a loving family environment. Today, Catholic Care for Children International provides care in over 200 locations and programs through its partners in Uganda, Kenya, and Zambia and is expanding into other countries.
“The new CCCI website is a way for us to share the urgent need for care reform and the visionary approaches that religious institutes are developing,” said Sister Niluka Perera, RGS, the UISG Coordinator of Catholic Care for Children International.
Thousands of children worldwide live in institutions such as orphanages. Children are placed there not because they are without family members: 80% of the children have a parent or close relative. Research shows that the main reason is poverty. “No child should live in an institution because the family is poor or overwhelmed by the difficulty of accessing basic health services, social protection, or education for their child,” said Sister Perera.
Catholic Sisters are committed to changing that, she added, and the website will help. The site enables Sisters and religious institutes to easily share resources with each other, the public, and the variety of organizations involved in the global care movement. The [resources](https://catholiccareforchildren.org/information/) include materials such as reports and videos describing models of care that CCCI partners in Uganda, Zambia, and Kenya are designing, implementing, and evaluating.
The website also features stories from the perspective of children and families, such as the story of [Baby Celine’s journey](https://catholiccareforchildren.org/baby-celine/) from orphanage to kinship care. Baby Celine is among the 2,500 children who now live in families instead of institutions because of the work of CCCI partners and their collaborators in the diocese, state and local government agencies, and many other organizations.
The commitment to a family for every child is also a commitment to change for Sisters, colleagues, and religious institutes. In the past, Sisters often expressed their charism of care through institutional approaches, in settings such as children’s homes, babies’ homes, and rehabilitation centers for children with disabilities. Today, with new insights about the importance of family nurture for children’s full development, Sisters are shifting to family- and community-based care. But making this shift requires new knowledge and skills. Sister Pat Murray, IBVM, the Executive Secretary of UISG, said, “Sisters should be in the forefront of change in this sector, and UISG is committed to working with religious congregations worldwide to bring about systemic change and to share best practice in the area of care reform.”
The website reflects the depth of this commitment, illustrating what it takes to build capacity for achieving the vision of a family for every child. For example, a [report](https://catholiccareforchildren.org/catholic-care-for-children-in-uganda-findings-from-a-midterm-evaluation/) of CCCI partners in Uganda describes a major educational initiative in which hundreds of religious have received training in areas such as child protection and safeguarding. In addition, dozens of religious have returned to school and earned degrees in social work, equipping them for new responsibilities. A graduate explained that previously her role was entirely in the child care institution, focused on care giving such as meals and basic health needs of the children. Her role has since expanded: “Now I take part in resettling children [following a separation from family] and working with the legal team as well as working directly with the probation officers.”