13 October, Vitebsk /Diana Kurilo - BELTA/. The Vitebsk region is observing a steady upward trend in the number of adoptions, the commission for juvenile affairs under the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee informed a BELTA correspondent. Over the 9 months of the current year, 70 orphans have found new parents, while last year during the same period, adoptive parents took care of 54 non-biological children. It is worth noting that in previous years, the number of children finding new families also increased. Such trends allow us to expect that by the end of the five-year period, out of the 7 children's homes and 4 boarding schools currently existing in the region, only 5 institutions for orphans may remain. Currently, in addition to children's homes and boarding schools, 15 family-type children's homes are functioning in the region, and two more will appear by the end of the current year in Shumilino and Chashniki districts. According to the commission's data as of September 1 of the current year, in January-August, 162 parents were deprived of parental rights, and 211 children became social orphans. In total, since the decree No. 18 "On additional measures for state protection of children in dysfunctional families" came into force (from January 1, 2007. - BELTA note), 3090 children were removed from parents due to family dysfunction, of which 1712 were returned to their biological families after the neglectful parents proved their desire to return to a normal life. 1014 children acquired permanent status as children left without parental care due to family dysfunction. -0-

BELTA