NESVIZH DISTRICT, 22 January (BelTA) - Families with children are entitled to wide-ranging support in Belarus, and this policy has become the country's calling card. Even in difficult economic conditions the state did not save on families and will not, Belarus' Deputy Prime Minister Igor Petrishenko said as he welcomed the participants of the national open dialogue "Large family as the priority of the state family policy" running in the National Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve at Nesvizh, BelTA has learned.
"Supporting large families is the absolute priority for the government. You are a pillar of the sustainable development of our state," Igor Petrishenko said addressing the participants. He stressed that the government clearly sees the values and life priorities of modern youth: career, personal development, and hence later marriage and the birth of children. We need to take this into account in our family policy.”
"The country has created the basis for improving the economic potential of families with children. Significant funds have been invested in all areas vital for them,” Igor Petrishenko said. “In the past year alone, about Br4.65 billion of the budget was earmarked to support families raising children. This accounted for 3% of GDP. In this regard, I want to assure you that our state has never economized on families and will not."
He urged the participants of the meeting to actively engage in the discussion: how to increase the number of large families, how to make their life more comfortable.
Twenty large families from all regions of the country have been invited to the meeting. Among the participants are parents of three, four, and five children. Not only birth children. For example, the Kuzmin family has six children, three of them adopted. The largest family among the participants is the Mikhaltsov family. They said that they see the meeting as an opportunity to discuss, on behalf of all parents, the government family policy and to work out proposals on how to improve it.
“In the current five-year period, the government will continue working to address key issues for families. We need to ensure the affordability of various types of housing, especially for young families,” added Igor Petrishenko. Among other key areas of work are accessibility and flexibility of preschool education; diversity of forms and types of care and education services for children of different ages, including in rural areas; harmonious family-work balance; strengthening the family institution, promoting the idea of a successful large family; large-scale work with the youth audience, including in social networks, through social advertising, culture and art.
These priorities are reflected in the country's main program document - the program of social and economic development for 2021-2025, the draft of which has been submitted for nationwide discussion ahead of the 6th Belarusian People's Congress, Igor Petrishenko said.
“By providing comprehensive support to the family, the state has the right to expect socially responsible behavior from parents, who should care about the health and well-being of their children, raise them as patriots, worthy citizens of our country,” he said.
