DSWD urges childless couples to adopt orphans legally

MANILA, Philippines - Childless couples are encouraged to adopt orphans through legal means.

In celebrating Adoption Consciousness Week from Feb. 15 to 23, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is aggressively promoting legal adoption.

Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said the DSWD has been pursuing programs to make legal adoption easier.

Free legal aid will be extended to prospective adoptive parents in a one-year tie-up with the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, she added.

Soliman said the DSWD will also establish the Rapid Family Tracing and Reunification Program (RFTRP) for the registration of orphans.

“This is especially true in the situation of orphaned children in Eastern Visayas, where some Typhoon Yolanda survivors have taken custody of some orphans in their localities,” she said. “Children orphaned by Yolanda deserve to get the proper psychological and material support needed for their recovery.”

By registering under the RFTRP, families and individuals taking custody of orphans can become foster families or parents and avail of the benefits provided for under the Foster Care Act of 2012, Soliman said.

As of December 2013, the DSWD has registered 87 children orphaned due to Yolanda.

In 2012, the DSWD issued the Implementing Rules and Regulations for Republic Act 10165, the Foster Care Act.

It includes qualifications for those interested in being a foster parent or providing temporary care to abused, abandoned, neglected children, and children with special needs.

The law has provisions on the adoption of orphans.

Adoption Consciousness Week is observed annually based on Presidential Proclamation 72, dated Feb. 3, 1999.

During Adoption Consciousness Week, the DSWD will disseminate basic information about adoption, including the processes, requirements and its benefits and effects.

Adoption help desks will be set up in selected SM and Ayala Malls in Metro Manila to provide information on adoption.

Manning these desks are social workers from DSWD field offices in Calabarzon, Mimaropa and Metro Manila, as well as representatives from accredited child-placing agencies like Norfil Foundation Inc. and Kaisahang Buhay Foundation (KBF).

Other activities include launching of the adoption dashboard, photo exhibit of families and their adopted children, and a forum on the professional practice of social work on adoption in different settings.