Women are being encouraged to play a greater role in protecting children from abuse while also taking advantage of government programmes aimed at improving their economic wellbeing.
Speaking at the Lautoka Women's Forum at Lautoka Mall, Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection Sashi Kiran says the Ministry continues to work closely with women, children and older persons, with a strong focus on addressing emerging social issues, including gender-based violence and child protection.
Kiran says one of the Ministry's key priorities is addressing gender-based violence, and through the Women's Forums, awareness is being raised on serious issues affecting families, including child sexual abuse, child sexual exploitation and the dangers of children and young people sharing intimate images online.
She says parents and communities need to have these conversations, understand the risks and work together to keep children safe.
The Minister also encourages women to make use of economic opportunities available through Government and its partners, highlighting the Ministry's National Action Plan on Women's Economic Empowerment.
Kiran says many women are looking for opportunities to improve their livelihoods, whether through product development training, grants or access to markets, and the Government is creating more pathways for women to succeed.
She also stresses that support is available across different government ministries through programmes that help women build skills, start businesses, access finance and improve household incomes.
During the forum, women raised concerns about accessing markets for their products and sought information on skills training, grants and other support available for small businesses.
Participants also asked about the Ministry's social protection schemes, services for vulnerable women and children, and adoption processes.
The forum also featured a parenting awareness session by UNICEF Fiji, where Social Policy Specialist Akuila Sovanivalu and Halitesh Datt introduced the Bebbo Parenting App and assisted mothers in downloading the free application.
The app provides guidance on child nutrition, health, early learning, developmental milestones and positive parenting for children from birth to six years of age.
The Lautoka Women's Forum brought together women's groups from communities across Lautoka to discuss issues affecting women, children and families, while learning more about government initiatives and services available to support them.
