More than 400 social assistants from Moldovan communities will attend training courses organized by the Ministry of Social Protection, Family and Child, Info-Prim Neo reports. According to the Ministry, the 80 hours of training will be held in the municipalities of Balti and Chisinau. These will include theoretical and practical aspects of social assistance, the existing legal framework, mechanism of applying specific laws, professional standards, procedures of applying social assistance, and social services offered to groups of specific beneficiaries. “The need for the training comes from the fact that some 80 percent of the social assistants employed in the communities of the country have education in other areas than social assistance. At the same time, a great part of the population doesn't understand the role of the social assistants in the community and their responsibilities”, the Ministry said. Upon completion, the trainees will receive certificates. This training is mandatory and is organized in conformity with the Strategy on the continuous professional training of social assistance employees covering the period 2009 – 2012. The trainers will include representatives from the Ministry, academic community and civil society, who received prior training from national and international professionals. 1,148 social assistants work in Moldovan communities. More than 600 of them attended mandatory courses in 2007.