Children in Ukraine
Of Ukraine’s nine million children some 65,000 live in state-run children’s institutions such as orphanages, boarding schools and shelters. Family poverty, unemployment, alcoholism and drug use are the main reasons for children being abandoned. Thousands of children also choose to run away from violence in their homes. They find refuge on the streets where they run the risk of contracting tuberculosis and HIV through injecting drugs. Many children leave home because they have been left to fend for themselves while their parents have migrated abroad to find work. Despite the government’s efforts to prevent child abandonment and create foster care within the community, the number of children in institutions has doubled in the past ten years. Article provided by UNICEF Ukraine
