Residential care settings for children in the Philippines: Examining their transnational and neocolonial characteristics and the implications for children’s social welfare

Abstract

This article investigates the contemporary transnational and neocolonial characteristics of children’s welfare in the Philippines, drawing on the perspectives of young people in residential care settings (RCSs) (aka orphanages) as well as the views of programme and policy actors embedded across child protection systems. Its findings highlight the funding and governance roles of transnational actors in child and family welfare programmes, the commodification of children that these transnational dynamics engender and the Philippines’ dependence on international actors to support children’s welfare. Recommendations include the enhanced regulation of RCSs, expanded social protection measures and greater use of family-based care models.