State must demonstrate its commitment to wellbeing of current and future families - Rinekvics

RIGA - On April 23, President Edgars Rinkevics met with Welfare Minister Reinis Uzulnieks at the Riga Castle, LETA learned from the president's aide Martins Dregeris.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the Welfare Ministry's key priorities, including the revision of benefits for families with children, the introduction of a basic pension model for senior citizens, and employment opportunities for persons with special needs.

"Progress in addressing demographic issues is moving in the right direction. Concrete and clearly defined steps are needed to demonstrate the state's commitment to the wellbeing of current and future families," said Rinkevics.

As reported, in early April, the Demographic Affairs Council revised a report on the development of demographic policy. In order to determine the measures to be implemented next year as a priority to improve the quality of life of families with children, the responsible ministries should prepare and submit to the Welfare Ministry proposals with actions in certain areas, including performance indicators, necessary funding, as well as the source of funding, by May 16 this year.

The actions to be supported in the report are planned in cooperation with the Health Ministry, the Smart Administration and Regional Development Ministry, the Culture Ministry and other institutions. A number of plans also involve local authorities, NGOs and trade unions.

In 2025, the implementation of the measures envisaged in the report is to be ensured from the allocated state budget funds, while in 2026 and subsequent years, the issue of additional funding is to be addressed during the preparation of the current year's state budget, with the responsible ministries submitting proposals for priority measures.