President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy together with his wife Olena met with adoptive parents, guardians, foster parents and caregivers on the Adoption Day, which is celebrated on September 30.
Each of the guests invited to the meeting with the Head of State upbrings orphans or children deprived of parental care.
The Head of State stressed that first of all he wanted to thank the attendees for the care and love they gave to the children.
“You are doing a great job that, unfortunately, is not done by our state. It is not doing enough – the way it should be in a normal, democratic European country,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
He recalled that there were more than 700 boarding schools in our country. The President supports the idea of reforming the boarding system of upbringing and formation of a family policy of the state aimed at supporting the family.
“There are so many kids there. And, of course, we would like to have no boarding schools at all. Children should be in families – live, grow up and feel like ordinary happy children,” the Head of State stressed.
As an example of the effectiveness of the family form of upbringing, Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned well-known stars and distinguished personalities of the world scale, who were brought up by foster parents and achieved considerable success in various fields.
“We know a lot of western examples of stars, great people who were raised by foster parents or caregivers. But they grew up in families that really became theirs. That is why I want to thank you too, because you are real parents of the children you are raising and you really help the state. And we want to help you,” the President said.
During the conversation with the President, the parents discussed the issues important to them, including the necessity of simplifying the procedures for obtaining certificates required for guardianship or adoption. The families also stressed the need for preventing orphanage and working with families that found themselves in difficult circumstances.
