UNICEF HK welcomes “Policy Address 2023”
UNICEF HK welcomes all the policies concerning children’s welfare in "The Chief Executive's 2023 Policy Address", delivered by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, today, in particular
- Facilitating the implementation of the mandatory reporting regime for early identification and intervention into child abuse cases;
- Caring for the mental health of children and youth, launching a resource kit to assist schools in promoting mental health;
- Prioritizing families with newborns to apply for Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) and Public Rental Housing (PRH), as well as resolving undesirable living conditions with a focus on tackling subdivided housing, creating a living environment conducive to children’s upbringing;
- Supporting ethnic minority children and youth to better integrate into the community in areas such as education;
- Extending the After-School Care Programme for Pre-primary Children and strengthening the home-based child care service, assisting working families in childbearing;
- Establishing a breastmilk bank and formulating the related mechanism for breastmilk donation.
The above measures will not only provide children with more development opportunities but also strengthen the needed support for their care-takers.
Children are the future of our society. UNICEF HK appeals the HKSAR Government to consider implementation of a wide range of child-friendly measures in Hong Kong. It is of utmost importance to seamlessly integrate the voices, needs and rights of children into the city's urban development planning process, thereby transforming Hong Kong into a thriving and exemplary child-friendly city.