NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 15 – The State Department for Social Protection has halted the registration of new children homes as part of measures to tame rising cases of child abuse.
Principal Secretary for Labour and Social Protection Nelson Marwa made the revelation on Wednesday when he appeared before the Senator Committee on Labour and Social Welfare.
The committee had sought responses on the mechanisms the Ministry of Labour had put in place to protect children in alternative care.
In his response, Marwa said that the department had put in place stringent measures to deter foreigners from putting up such centers.
The statement was requested after concerns of increased cases of children abuse under alternative care.
An example of such a case was brought to light after a documentary by a local TV station detailed how a missionary abused children he purported to care for at a home in Boito, Bomet County.
“The government has put in place sufficient security measures including stopping registration of the centers, and unlike before it’s difficult for a foreigner to come and put up children’s charitable institutes within a short period,” said Marwa.
PS Marwa said the department has been carrying out due diligence on existing centres, so as to ensure they meet the required standards.
He reported that two centers in Kajiado and Mombasa had been closed over failure to meet the standards.
“We are going round in every county to ensure that the existing institutions are genuine, some of them you will realize their directors are business people and their interest is money. Some are quacks,” he said.
Marwa also pointed out that collaboration with other government agencies such as Ministry of Interior had yielded fruits in ensuring children’s safety, citing recent collaboration with the Directorate of Criminal Investigation which saw suspects of child kidnappings arrested.
He said the vice had gone down and the government doesn’t anticipate a re-occurrence.
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