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January 10, 2013

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Counties lack child welfare agencies

GOVERNMENT-FUNDED child welfare agencies have been established in only a minority of China's county-level regions, an official with the Ministry of Civil Affairs has revealed.

Only 64 such agencies are available in counties across the country, the unidentified official said yesterday.

The comments come as many orphans face transfers from privately operated orphanages to state-backed institutions. The ministry on Sunday announced a month-long nationwide inspection of orphanages run by individuals and private operators after a fatal fire at one such operation in central China's Henan Province.

If the orphanages do not meet requirements, children should be sent to child welfare agencies, the ministry said.

According to statistics provided by the ministry, China has some 615,000 orphans although the figure fluctuates each year.

Around 109,000 live in government-funded agencies, with the rest being fostered by relatives or private orphanages.

Besides the 64 child welfare agencies in counties, there are nine such agencies funded by provincial-level governments and 333 by prefectural-level governments.

The official said that China's child welfare network remains imperfect, and regulations need to be revised to lower overly stringent requirements for adoption.





 

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