Six children were abandoned in the first six months of this year in Kosovo. Including cases carried over from previous years, there are a total of 28 children currently under institutional protection, through forms of legal and family protection. However, requests for adoption have also increased.
Magbule Koci, senior official for the protection of abandoned children, stated that compared to the same period as last year, the number of abandoned children remains the same.
Adoption as a process begins with the request of those interested in adoption and is directed to the Basic Court based on territorial competence. Based on the legislation, the court is obliged to seek a professional opinion from the Center for Social Work, which, based on the mandate, made a professional assessment of the suitability of the potential adoptive family.
The basic forms of temporary and permanent legal and social protection for the category of children without parental care are: Guardianship, family housing within relatives, family housing outside relatives, temporary housing in shelters and adoption as a permanent form of protection.