Institutional assessment of the responsiveness of service providers to violence against children in Macedonia

Abstract

This report presents the findings of an institutional assessment of the responsiveness of the child protection system in the Republic of Macedonia to violence against children. The study specifically looked for formal mechanisms that govern the referral of cases of violence to the appropriate institutions, as well as those that promote cooperation and coordination among component actors in the child protection system. The research goals were to collect data from various service providers in the child protection system on the number of cases of violence recorded or documented in a 12-month period, types of action taken in recorded cases of violence (e.g., the number of cases reported to police, the number referred to social services), coordination mechanisms among institutions involved in recorded cases of violence as well as mechanisms which monitor, supervise and evaluate institutions and professionals that work with victims of violence. Select samples illustrate how incidents of violence against children come to notice in the child protection system and how the system responds. Overall, the research sample covered interviewees from 277 institutions, including social work centers, health centers, hospitals, pre-schools, schools, police stations, residential institutions, detention and correctional facilities, as well as reception and transit centers for children in conflict with the law. In general, from the survey results, it can be concluded that there are no legally or officially regulated criteria in Macedonia for recording, referring and treating cases of violence against children. In addition, there are no mechanisms for cooperation among institutions dealing with child victims of violence, and no mechanisms for monitoring and evaluating the quality of services provide to affected children and their families.