The Child’s Right to Quality Care: Review of the implementation of the United Nations guidelines for the alternative care of children in Western Balkan countries

This review of the Implementation of the United Nations Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children in the Western Balkan Countries provides information on the capacities and efforts of the Republic of Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina in ensuring the protection and actualization of the child’s right to live with his/her own family, or the right to alternative care and reunion with the family, where appropriate.

The purpose of this document is to review the current situation and accomplishments in the process of reforming the social welfare of children, from the standpoint of application of standards and principles prescribed by the Guidelines in these three countries, for a regional perspective and in order to create recommendations for decision makers, practitioners and other interested parties for further development of the welfare system suitable and accordant with the rights of the child.

This document is intended for decision makers and practitioners working to secure the rights of the child to live in their own family or in alternative care and possibly reunite with family when possible. The review of the implementation of the United Nations guidelines for alternative care of children provides information on the capabilities, achievements and problems that Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia are facing in trying to operationalize the standards defined in the document entitled “Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children” adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 2009.