Models of care for children in the context of HIV/AIDS are typically viewed along a continuum, with clear value attached to preferred options and with little understanding of areas of overlap. In this regard, institutional care is widely referred to as the “last resort” in responding to the care needs of children, largely because of the negative impact on children of long-term institutionalisation, but also because of the costs of raising a child in an institution.
Despite this, residential care facilities for children – and in particular for so-called “AIDS orphans” – continue to emerge in South Africa. Many newer facilities are unregistered. As a result, their services are unmonitored and unsupported by the Department of Social Development.
Over the past year the Children’s Institute in collaboration with the Centre for the Study of AIDS at the University of Pretoria has been conducting research to examine the phenomenon of residential care for children, and the forms that it is currently taking in the face of the AIDS pandemic in South Africa. The research considers these forms in relation to South African policy and legislation – including the reasons why residential facilities multiply and endure despite policy, law and the international child welfare sector's position on the issue.
The research has being conducted in four sites across South Africa, including an urban township in the Western Cape province; an inner-city area in Gauteng; a peri-urban site in Limpopo province; and in a rural area in KwaZulu-Natal.
For more information on this project, or to order a copy of the forthcoming research report, contact Helen Meintjes.
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