The Center “Partnership for Development” (CPD) in connection with the International Day of Families calls on the authorities to take measures to support the families with children, such as to offer greater flexibility to parents in choosing the length of the childcare leave, to approve a program to extend the crèche services and to amend the legal framework so as to encourage the introduction of alternative childcare services, IPN reports.

As to the length of the childcare leave, the CPD said the reform should offer maximum freedom to parents. “The system should offer flexibility and should cover parents’ options on the whole spectrum of options: from those parents who want a shorter leave period (better paid and provision of appropriate crèche services) to those parents who prefer a longer period of leave (with lower payments)”, runs the press release.

As regards the extension of crèche services, the CPD reminded that the amendments to the Education Code adopted in 2018 modified the age for accepting children to crèches (0-2 years) and to kindergartens (2-6/7 years). It was then decided that the Government will work out and approve a program to extend crèche services until 2020. “In 2019, only 22.5% of the children aged between one and two were enrolled at early education institutions. The low rate of access to ante-preschool education services is determined by the limited number of places at crèches or crèche-kindergartens, the activity conditions of these intuitions, their local distribution. This makes the employment or return of parents, especially mothers, to work difficult,” warned the CPD.

Another recommendation is to implement measures to encourage both of the parents to benefit from childcare leave. This would be possible by introducing the “quota for fathers” that enables fathers to be on parental leave for a longer period of time and to receive financial supplements.

The International Day of Families is celebrated annually on May 15. This day provides an opportunity to promote awareness of issues relating to families and to increase the knowledge of the social, economic and demographic processes affecting families.