During a working meeting with Acting Governor of the Rostov Region Yury Slyusar, Maria Lvova-Belova praised the regional team’s commitment to protecting the rights of families and children. The Children’s Rights Commissioner highlighted that inspection specialists had worked in the Rostov Region in November, reviewing management and financial models. They conducted audits in 13 institutions and organisations, took 160 personal files under direct supervision, and successfully facilitated the return of 76 children to their families.
Maria Lvova-Belova noted that significant progress in preventing social orphanhood was made in 2024, with positive trends observed across all indicators. However, more than a thousand children still remain in the region’s institutions.
The Acting Governor supported the proposal to establish an interdepartmental commission that will assess the justification for children’s placement in institutions and the possibilities for their return to families. The two sides also discussed the current structure of institutional oversight, noting that these institutions are currently under the jurisdiction of various agencies.
The Commissioner held a working meeting with the heads of regional social service institutions for families and children, organisations for orphans and children without parental care, as well as a meeting with the leaders of bodies and institutions involved in the prevention system, during which she shared her recommendations for the region.
During her working visit, Maria Lvova-Belova visited the social rehabilitation centre for minors in the Azovsky District, the crisis support centre for families, and Specialised Children’s Home No 4 (for children with organic damage to the central nervous system and mental disorders), where she also conducted a personal reception of citizens.