Law on the Implementation of Care Centers

PURPOSE OF THE LAW. The purpose of this Law is to guarantee the implementation of accessible and quality Child Care Centers and Child Day Care Facilities throughout the national territory, with the purpose of supporting working mothers, facilitating their access to the labor market, contributing to the integral development of childhood, and promoting shared responsibility between the State, the family, and the community.

GOVERNANCE AND INSTITUTIONAL COORDINATION. The State Secretariat in the Offices of Childhood, Adolescence, and Family (SENAF) is the governing institution of this Program, with the direct support of:

• 1)

  The municipalities, especially those where priority needs are identified;

• 2)

  The State Secretariat in the Office of Social Development (SEDESOL);

• 3)

  The State Secretariat in the Office of Health (SESAL), to guarantee medical care and wellness services in the day care centers and child care facilities;

• 4)

  The State Secretariat in the Office of Education (SEDUC), to ensure the implementation of initial educational programs appropriate to the ages of minors; and,

• 5)

  Local philanthropic organizations and international cooperation, who may provide technical, financial, and human resource assistance.

SELECTION AND PRIORITIZATION CRITERIA. The implementation of the Program must prioritize:

• 1)

  Areas with the highest rates of poverty and vulnerability;

• 2)

  Municipalities with a high percentage of working mothers and with limited supply of child care services; and,

• 3)

  Communities that demonstrate institutional and social capacity to support the development of the Program.

QUALITY STANDARDS. The State Secretariat in the Offices of Childhood, Adolescence, and Family (SENAF) must establish minimum standards for the operation of Child Care Centers and Child Day Care Facilities, including:

• 1)

  Physical and emotional safety for children;

• 2)

  Adequate spaces for learning, play, and rest;

• 3)

  Personnel trained in child care and development; and,

• 4)

  Access to nutritious food and basic medical care.

COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION. The active participation of families and communities must be promoted in the management, supervision, and sustainability of Child Care Centers and Child Day Care Facilities, promoting an approach of shared responsibility in child care.

BUDGET LINE. The public institutions involved must include in their annual budgets a specific line item designated for the financing of Child Care Centers and Child Day Care Facilities, ensuring the sustainability of the Program.

REGULATORY AUTHORITY. Within the term of Ninety (90) days from the date this Law enters into force, the State Secretariat in the Offices of Childhood, Adolescence, and Family (SENAF), being able to rely on international organizations in the capacity of advisors, as well as other actors that are invited, shall proceed to develop and issue the Regulations of this Law.

EFFECTIVE DATE. This Decree shall enter into force from the date of its publication in the Official Newspaper 'La Gaceta'. Done in the city of Tegucigalpa, municipality of the Central District, in the Session Room of the National Congress, on the seventh day of the month of May of two thousand twenty-five.