On January 26, at the meeting of the Supervisory Committee, the Ministry of Welfare presented the plans of support for the 2021-2027 planning period.
The Ministry plans to invest 363.5 million euros for the improvement and innovation of social services, the development of social work, the improvement of the system for the protection of children's rights, and the improvement of the quality of work of institutions in the support sector.
"In the next planning period, we will purposefully direct funding from EU funds to improve the quality of life for less protected groups. It is important to provide services that meet modern requirements, including family-friendly social care for children with disabilities. We intend to create a support system for parents when a child is diagnosed with a disability, preparing the family practically and psychologically for everyday life. Funding is also planned for the improvement of the competencies of those working in the sector, which will make services more accessible, understandable, and of higher quality for citizens," emphasizes Evika Siliņa, Minister of Welfare.
The most important directions of investment are the promotion of employment, for which almost 127.5 million euros are planned, the development of social services, investing almost 199 million euros, and the improvement of the performance of institutions in the amount of 37.2 million euros.
Employment promotion measures are intended to raise the qualifications of the unemployed and people at risk of unemployment, to promote the integration of these people into the labor market, to ensure the operation of the EURES network, and also to improve European labor mobility opportunities. It is planned to implement support measures for a longer and healthier working life for workers, providing funding for adapting the work environment and improving work processes, health promotion, and education.
Improvement of the performance of industry institutions foresees improvements in the work of the State Employment Agency, the State Labor Inspectorate, the State Commission for Health and Working Capacity Expertise Doctors, including customer service and the development of information systems. Social service providers and social work specialists, as well as children's rights protection specialists, will be able to improve their professional competence. It is also planned to develop a certification system for orphan court officials.
The largest part of the funding of EU funds is allocated to the development of industry services. The benefits planned here will be the creation of new places for receiving social care services closer to the family environment for children with functional disorders and people with severe mental disorders, support for palliative care patients and their family members, support for social enterprises, vulnerable groups of society - families with children with behavioral and addiction problems, children with a severe diagnosis of a disability and their family members, people with mental disorders. Public education, reducing the risk of discrimination and violence will also continue to be a focus of attention.
European Union Cohesion Policy Program 2021-2027. has been approved by the European Commission on November 25, 2022.
