1 June 2021

KOMF visited the member NGO, SOS Children’s Villages in Kosovo, which provides services for around 1000 children without parental care and at risk of withdrawal of parental care.

During the meeting it was discussed on the future joint actions to address and include the new form for protection of these children “Supervised Independent Living”, in frame of the draft Civil Code which foresees continuation of protection of children without parental care even after the age of 18, until they are empowered and independent.

The current legislation does not foresee any form of protection for children without parental care after the age of 18. As a consequence, children without parental care at the age of 18, remain without shelter and services and in some cases, these children who are with disabilities, as a result of lack of any protection form, are displaced from foster care to the Shtime institution, which is considered to be of huge damage for the physical and psychological development of the child.

The draft Civil Code must foresee this form of protection in order to guarantee protection of children without parental car until the age of 26, until the child is graduated, empowered and independent.