Romania's national ombudsman, Paul Mitroi, has said the country doesn't fully respect children's rights.

In a report released in Bucharest, Mr Mitroi says both orphans and children in parental care have become the victims of economic reform and decentralisation, with youth crime and school dropout rates on the increase.

The report also highlights child homelessness, and says cash-strapped orphanages have come to view international adoption as a source of much-needed revenue.

Tens of thousands of abandoned children in Romania continue to live in squalid conditions in state institutions, despite efforts by a government taskforce set up to tackle the problem. The European Union has made improved child care one of the conditions for admitting the country -- one of Europe's poorest -- into its ranks.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service