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The President congratulated the audience and all Russian women on the forthcoming International Women’s Day and wished them personal happiness and all the best.

At the meeting, they discussed children’s homelessness, the situation in orphanages and boarding schools, and also foster homes and patronage.

The President expressed concern over the third “wave” of homelessness in the country. The first two waves were caused by wars (the Civil War /1918–1920/ and the Great Patriotic War /1941–1945/) and the loss of parents. At present, the President said, 80% of homeless children have living parents. According to President Putin, the situation in orphanages and boarding schools was also alarming.

A lively and emotional discussion touched on all problems connected with the education and upbringing of the teenagers, in particular, the increase in crime and drug addiction, the lack of a proper rehabilitation system, and the protection of children’s rights. The restoration of the family as a social institution was another central theme under discussion.

Summarising the results of the meeting, the President said that familial problems were most relevant and connected, in particular, with the disintegration of the state, the impoverishment of the majority of Russians, and the current state of the economy. He promised that more attention would be given to the rising generation.

The President said that a special headquarters for eliminating homelessness had been recently set up under the Russian Interior Ministry.

Vladimir Putin noted that the problem of homeless children from CIS countries also called for an urgent solution. He promised to raise that issue at a future meeting of CIS countries’ leaders.