The National Authority for Child Care (NACC) on Sunday appealed to parents facing extreme personal, social, or economic difficulties to “choose the legal process of voluntarily surrendering, rather than abandoning their child.”

“Abandoning a child endangers their life and deprives them of their right to identity, protection, and belonging,” NACC Undersecretary Janella Ejercito Estrada said.

“The biological family remains the foremost and natural carer of children. However, when parents are driven by extreme circumstances and believe they can no longer provide proper care, the government has established a humane, legal, and protective system that safeguards the child’s welfare and future,” Estrada added, pointing to the execution of the Deed of Voluntary Commitment (DVC) after thorough counselling and the provision of needed interventions.

Protecting foundlings through the law

The NACC emphasized that Republic Act No. 11767, or the Foundling Recognition and Protection Act, enacted on 6 May 2022, strengthened the protection of foundlings by automatically recognizing them as natural-born Filipino citizens and ensuring their access to government protection and assistance.

A foundling is an abandoned child, infant, or individual with no known parentage or information on the circumstances of their birth.

The salient features of the law include the immediate provision of government programs and services, including urgent health remedies; strong provisions against discrimination; the conduct of a diligent search for biological parents and birth information; registration as a foundling and issuance of a Certificate of Live Birth; and the provision of adoption and alternative child care options such as kinship care, family-like care, and foster care.

Since 2023, the NACC has provided alternative child care programs and services for hundreds of foundlings nationwide. About 308 children were declared legally available for adoption. Of these, 157 were issued Orders of Adoption under the Domestic Administrative Adoption program, 34 received Decrees of Adoption under the Inter-Country Adoption program, while 160 foundlings were placed under the care of licensed foster families.

The NACC strongly urges parents in crisis to seek help and legally surrender their child when necessary, rather than resorting to abandonment, illegal adoption arrangements, or acts that may expose children to trafficking and exploitation.

Parents may surrender their child/children to municipal or city social workers or through “safe haven providers,” such as LGU residential care facilities (RCFs), private child-caring agencies (CCAs), Child Placing Agencies (CPAs), DOH-accredited medical facilities, or the NACC’s Regional Alternative Child Care Offices (RACCOs).

The NACC emphasized that government support through LGUs and the DSWD is available for parents undergoing crises, with the aim of encouraging them to keep care and custody of their children.

Support programs include counselling, livelihood and financial assistance such as the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) and the Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP), and the ProtecTEEN program for adolescent parents.

The NACC assured the public that the legal process for adoption and alternative child care, such as kinship care, family-like care, and foster care, has become simpler, faster, and less costly.

A Petition for Adoption is filed directly with the RACCOs and, if sufficient in form and substance, an Order of Adoption may be issued within nine (9) months.

“This streamlined process is intended to ensure that children declared legally available for adoption are provided safe, loving, and permanent families at the soonest possible time,” Estrada said.

Reporting a foundling

The NACC reminds all citizens of their legal and moral responsibility when discovering a foundling:

The “finder” (must be 18 years or older) must report the incident within forty-eight (48) hours to the nearest authorities, municipal or city social workers, government hospitals, or safe havens.

The finder must execute an affidavit detailing the circumstances of the discovery.

If a foundling is relinquished or surrendered to safe haven providers, they are required to report to the NACC through its RACCO within forty-eight (48) hours via the fastest means available.

The NACC likewise warned against the spread of misinformation and sensationalized social media content involving foundlings, emphasizing that cases involving foundlings must be handled with “utmost respect for the child’s dignity, privacy, and rights.”

Only authorities may publicly post a child’s image as part of the diligent search process for biological parents and birth information.

Individuals who deliberately create or spread false information may face liability under the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 and other relevant provisions of the Revised Penal Code.

For inquiries regarding voluntary surrender, adoption, or foster care, one may contact the NACC or the nearest RACCO nationwide.