As part of a project to improve after-school care for children and teenagers, the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) yesterday called on non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to work with the ministry to build a community-based network.
“Because of changes in social and family structures, we’ve noticed increasing numbers of families with a single parent or foreign spouse. There are more families suffering financial difficulties and it is increasingly common for children to be raised by grandparents,” said Huang Chen-jung (黃貞容), an official at the ministry’s Children’s Bureau.
“To lift some childcare pressure off these families and to prevent them from being marginalized, we’ve launched a project to build a community-based childcare network with government resources,” she said.
Huang said the ministry had asked for help from NGOs because the recession had affected its budget.
“We will need about 80 NGOs to work with us to create more centers for youngsters across the country and to strengthen the social security network,” she said, adding that the project would include after-school childcare and education, psychological counseling and group activities.
Children’s Welfare League Foundation executive director Alicia Wang (王育敏) welcomed the project but urged the ministry to pay more attention to health issues for children in disadvantaged families.
“Children from disadvantaged families often need some help with schoolwork, since their parents cannot afford to send them to cram schools or tutorial centers,” Wang said. “However, they also need help with medical provision.”
Wang pointed out that many parents in disadvantaged families cannot afford to pay for any health insurance — including the National Health Insurance — so are often reluctant to take their children to see doctors.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
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