A half-day workshop, aiming to reinforce family values and relations as well as raise awareness on the necessity of engaging into respectful relationships within the society, was held at Amaury Social Welfare Centre, in Rivière du Rempart.
The Minister of Gender Equality and Family Welfare, Mrs Kalpana Devi Koonjoo-Shah, the Chairperson of Amaury Social Welfare Committee, Mr S. Bholah, were present on the occasion.
In her address, Minister Koonjoo-Shah underlined that families have the important role of inculcating core values such as respect, love, honesty, peace and non-violence to their children at an early stage. These values, she emphasised, bring out the fundamental goodness of human beings, society and the country at large.
According to the Minister, communication is important to bring family members closer, and, without which a family can fall apart. She observed that the COVID-19 pandemic has created opportunities for families to spend time together, communicate and create stronger bonds.
Minister Koonjoo-Shah dwelt on the importance of united families as fundamental units of society. She indicated that they play a meaningful role in assisting Government in achieving its goals across all sectors and spheres of development.
Government, she stressed, has at heart the welfare of the population and has come up with several measures in Budget 2022/23 to help middle income families live a decent life. They include: provision of a monthly allowance of Rs 1,000 to persons receiving a gross income of up to Rs 50,000; and several schemes in aid to women entrepreneurs.
As for Mr Bholah, he said that family is one of the most important pillars of the society. The workshop, he pointed out, will enable participants to further strengthening ties within their families and promote family values among generations by addressing the causes and effects of dysfunctional families.
