Cartagena steps up for vulnerable children with new support hub for foster families

The Costa Calida city of Cartagena has reinforced its commitment to children by supporting the Association of Foster Families of the Region of Murcia, also known as AFA.MU, in an initiative aimed at strengthening support and resources for foster families, as well as promoting social awareness in the municipality.

Cartagena marks World Foster Care Day with a pledge to the vulnerable children of the Costa Calida

The announcement, which was made on World Foster Care Day, seeks to highlight the importance of offering vulnerable children and adolescents a safe, stable, and loving home where they can grow. To help the association, Cartagena will provide AFA.MU with a municipal space, which will serve as a headquarters from which to offer support, advice, and training activities for foster families, as well as organise outreach campaigns.

Fostering children, while different from adoption, is an essential structure that assists and nurtures children during a crucial stage in their lives. Foster families help to provide a loving and safe atmosphere, protecting children from harm as they develop. During the announcement of the initiative, the families participating in the programme were thanked for their commitment.

Cartagena’s commitment: Hundreds of children depend on foster families in the Region of Murcia

During the announcement, the mayor of Cartagena, Noelia Arroyo, emphasised that the protection of children and adolescents is one of the priorities of the municipal government, and that Cartagena was recognised by UNICEF as a ‘Child Friendly City’, a distinction that honours the municipality’s commitment to the wellbeing of children.

In the Region of Murcia, there are approximately 1,200 children under guardianship, and more than half of these live with foster families. As a result, the region has prioritised the expansion of the network of foster families, in order to provide children with a safe environment to grow in.

The commitment by Cartagena to transfer this municipal space to the organisation represents a new step forward for the children of the municipality, and the promotion of family foster care as a fundamental tool in the major Costa Calida city.