Jordan Times
Monday, September 4, 2006

Committee reevaluates orphanage regulations

AMMAN (JT) — Her Majesty Queen Rania on Sunday reviewed with a national task force new regulations regarding institutions for orphaned and abused children before the suggestions are sent to the Cabinet and Parliament for approval.

The project began following a meeting last Ramadan between the Queen, the heads of these institutions and the Ministry of Social Development, when Her Majesty noted a need for new regulations to improve both the facilities and the quality of care.

The task force’s objective is to improve living conditions for children residing in these care centres, most of whom are orphans or victims of abuse who do not have a safe home in which to live.

The proposal includes the implementation of an efficient monitoring system whereby those in charge will ensure that once children leave the facilities, their quality of life is maintained including centre residents who reach 18 years of age and must leave.

The Queen said the reason she got involved in such an effort is because “there’s no one to protect [these children] and no one to speak for them.”

The task force also discussed the quality and training of their social workers.

Minister of Social Development Suleiman Tarawneh said that the task force outlined a two-prong system whereby the social workers who receive the training will be responsible for co-worker training to create an environment of continued learning within the facilities.

Her Majesty stressed that it is not only important to train the social workers, but to provide a positive working environment for them. “Many of the women I’ve seen come in under harsh circumstances. They already have so much to worry about that they can’t give their best to the children they are there to take care of,” she said.

Also included in the new regulations are the definition of a childcare centre, the authorisation process and building specifications, the criteria for social workers and an outline of penalty systems.

“I hope the situation improves to the point that there isn’t a big difference in the living situation and opportunities between children who live with their families and those in care centres,” said Queen Rania.

Also on Sunday, Her Majesty was briefed on progress of the selection process for the Queen Rania Award for Excellence in Education.

The meeting comes a few days before the field visits to schools begin, during which the assessors will visit candidates in their respective schools. These visits will open the door for discussion between the assessors and the teachers regarding different educational practices and possible ways to develop experiences and transfer knowledge.

While the list of candidates has been narrowed down from the original 1,126 applicants, Her Majesty said that all the teachers who were nominated for this award should be proud because that is already a sign of their commitment to quality education.

The winners will be honoured in a ceremony on Oct. 7.