Pay more attention to children with special needs
(Baonghean.vn) - Caring for children in especially difficult circumstances is of concern to social organizations and the community in Nghe An. However, because the number of children in special and difficult circumstances is large and they live in many remote areas, many children still do not have access to community support.
Many children do not have their basic needs met.
According to Ms. Tran Thi Loc - policy officer of Nghi Loc district, in the district there are currently 1,060 children in special circumstances and difficult circumstances, including 43 orphans with no place to rely on, 492 children from poor and near-poor households, and 525 children with disabilities.
The district has also fully, promptly and properly implemented regular social assistance policies for children in especially difficult circumstances, but in order for children to have their minimum needs met, it is in great need of the cooperation of many organizations in the community.
In Nghi Hoa commune (Nghi Loc district), there are 27 cases of children in especially difficult circumstances, including about 10 disabled children receiving monthly allowances. According to the commune's policy officer, the children in difficult circumstances from poor and near-poor households here are in great need in their daily lives, such as medicine, medical examination and treatment conditions and education costs. Every year, Nghi Hoa commune mobilizes resources to provide additional support for children in special and difficult circumstances, but the amount is not much.
Ms. Phan Thi Huyen - policy officer of Nghi Hoa commune said: In recent years, most children have been cared for, there are gifts on holidays and Tet; children in special circumstances have subsidies according to regulations, but in reality, it is not enough to meet the minimum needs. For example, children with disabilities need to be in a special care environment, or have a mechanism for regular re-examination, but these have not been met. Because most children with disabilities are in poor and near-poor households, their families do not have enough conditions to meet the minimum medical needs of the children. The resources of society and local authorities for the children are also very small compared to those minimum needs.
For example, the family of Mr. Dang Van Kien and Mrs. Tran Thi Thuy, residing in Hoa Tay hamlet, Nghi Hoa commune (Nghi Loc), is one of the poor households with especially difficult circumstances. Her family has 3 children, all of whom are mentally challenged. “The eldest is 18 years old, married two years ago, but now lives at her mother’s house. The youngest is only in 9th grade but studies very poorly. All the worries fall on my head…”, said the mother, who is the most sober in the family.
Currently, 5 people in Mr. Kien and Mrs. Thuy's family live in a charity house about 50 square meters wide.2But it is full of scrap because when cleaning up trash at the market, if there is anything of value, the grandparents and children pick it up and sell it to earn some extra income. Every day, the five of them work as garbage collectors at the district market near their home with a salary of nearly 2 million VND/month. "Although the support money for the disabled for the children is more than 2 million VND, it is not enough to cover the cost of medicine and the basic necessities for life" - Ms. Phan Thi Huyen added.
Ky Son district currently has 668 children in especially difficult circumstances, including 362 disabled children; 306 orphans and other difficult circumstances. Mr. Le Hong Lap - Head of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs of Ky Son district said: Child care and education has many difficulties, because of the rugged mountainous terrain, the high rate of children from poor households, so the support sources are just like "a drop in the ocean". Typically, the number of disabled children, although supported by the Children's Support Fund in medical examination and treatment, but because the roads are far away and their families are poor, "covering" all subjects with special circumstances in the area is really a problem...
The whole province has 899,955 children, of which the number of children in special and difficult circumstances is 13,011, accounting for 1.45%, of which 10,721 children with disabilities of all kinds account for 1.19% of the total number of children; children at risk of falling into special circumstances are 134,429 children.
As of May 2023, the number of children receiving regular allowances is 16,904, of which: Children with extremely severe disabilities: 2,169 children; children with severe disabilities: 5,873 children; there are 8,862 children under 3 years old from poor households, near-poor households living in communes and villages in ethnic minority and mountainous areas with special difficulties.
Resource constraints
In recent years, the whole province has deployed and well implemented the Programs under the Project to mobilize social resources to support children in especially disadvantaged communes in ethnic minority and mountainous areas; children in special and difficult circumstances in Nghe An province for the period 2021-2025, approved in Decision No. 2338/QD-UBND dated July 7, 2021 of the Provincial People's Committee.
From 2021 to 6 months of 2023, the resources for implementing children's work in the province are more than 116 billion VND to support and help children in special circumstances, children in difficult circumstances, orphans, children and families affected by epidemics and natural disasters such as floods. According to Mr. Phan Sy Hien - Deputy Director of the Provincial Children's Support Fund: Regarding the work of protecting, caring for and educating children, we must pay attention to preventing and stopping children from falling into special circumstances; promptly resolve and alleviate the special circumstances of children; persistently help children in special circumstances to recover their health, spirit and moral education;... The care and upbringing of children in special circumstances is carried out mainly at home or in a substitute family.
Mr. Hien also said that in 2022, the Provincial Children's Support Fund mobilized more than 19 billion VND and supported 24,836 children in special and difficult circumstances with diverse programs focusing on the essential needs of children. However, according to Mr. Hien, the number of children in special circumstances who need support and assistance from the social community is very large, while the survey of children's needs for support in some localities is still sketchy and not close to reality, leading to difficulties in developing and implementing plans. Moreover, in fact, through the Fund's survey, it shows that the awareness of some families with disabled children is still limited, when receiving information, they do not take their children for consultation, rehabilitation surgery, or early intervention.
According to Mr. Bui Van Hung - Deputy Director of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, there are still shortcomings such as the limited budget allocated to implement activities, not ensuring the implementation of necessary activities in the locality; the number of children in special and difficult circumstances in general, and children with disabilities in particular, is still high. The complicated developments of natural disasters and especially the Covid-19 pandemic have greatly impacted the mobilization of social resources to carry out the work of protecting, caring for and educating children in general, and children in special and difficult circumstances in particular.
Also according to Mr. Bui Van Hung, in the coming time, to do a good job of taking care of children in special and difficult circumstances, it is necessary to strengthen the leadership of Party committees, state management work and the role of the Fatherland Front and mass organizations and social organizations in the management and mobilization of resources to support children. Organize propaganda and mobilize resources to help children, especially children in especially difficult communes, ethnic minority and mountainous areas; children in special and difficult circumstances. Every year, the organization reviews, compiles statistics, classifies, and evaluates the needs and targets of children in special and difficult circumstances throughout the province to serve as a basis for effective management, distribution, and implementation of social, health, and education subsidy policies, combined with mobilizing resources to help and care for children in special and difficult circumstances, especially in communes of ethnic minorities and mountainous areas, so that children can access social, cultural, sports, entertainment, and recreation services...
Mr. Hung also proposed: In order for children to have more access to support sources, it is necessary to focus on socializing and mobilizing domestic and foreign resources in many diverse and practical forms. Continue to maintain sponsors and philanthropists in the past time; along with that, strengthen the mobilization of cadres, civil servants, public employees and workers of agencies, organizations, armed forces units... to contribute to support children. Pay attention to implementing the contents and programs that achieved low results in the previous period...
