published : 23 Sep 2022 at 00:01
Amid the Covid-19 pandemic and current social and economic risks that are severely affecting children and youth, the Department of Children and Youth (DCY) under the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security has implemented its “6P” (Policy, Potential, Protection, Prevention, Partnership, Participation) principles and digital service system to handle crises and disruptions to children’s and youth’s rights and promote family welfare in a thorough and transparent way.
In line with the national strategy, DCY’s first 6P principle, “Policy”, involves reform of learning and potential development for Thai children and youth such as a programme that benefits new born children up to the age of six years called “Child Support Grant”. In fiscal year 2022, 2,341,470 children have received financial subsidies, totalling 1,461,817,000 baht. 95.30 percent of the children recipients are reported to have made appropriate development. Moreover, the department uses the information from the programme to reach out to teenage mothers and provide them with career building training. This includes the Stronger (Teen) Mom project in collaboration with AIS to help over a thousand teenage mothers and a programme that develops occupational skills consistent with local contexts for 4,560 people.
DCY has conducted a database on Child Care Centres where each centre will do a self-assessment for its standard quality from A to D grades. So far, 88 percent of Child Care Centres have done the self-assessment. They are also entitled to improvement support from the Sub-committee on early childhood care at national, provincial and Bangkok levels.
The second principle, “Potential”, involves many projects for children and youth. The list includes: Big Rock project that gives music, sports and arts opportunities; RF21 project that aims to improve human resources starting at a Child Development and Rehabilitation Centre in Kanchanaburi Province and extending to Phitsanulok, Lamphun and Narathiwat Provinces; Three Languages to Future Career programme that teaches 402 children and youth; YEN-D project that offers 400 youth lessons in modern entrepreneurship in collaboration with Young Entrepreneur Network Development; a collaboration with CP All Plc. and Panyapiwat Technological College to offer education and career opportunities for youth; a programme to develop football and volleyball skills for youth in foster homes in collaboration with Central Retail Corporation Plc.; I-D Sign programme to advocate for sexuality and gender rights for teenagers, and a programme to develop potential 21st century leadership by The Children and Youth Council of Thailand.
For “Protection” and “Prevention” principles, the department focuses on building a strong child protection network at sub-district level. More than 2,875 sub-districts have established the Children Protection Committee, exceeding the intended target of 2,500. A local, multidisciplinary team helps protect the welfare of children and young people in all 77 Shelters for Children and Families nationwide as well as addressing social problems for children and families with around-the-clock operation. During the Covid-19 pandemic, 661,976 children, including 463 orphans, have been supported by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Meanwhile, the Back-to-School programme distributes learning materials donated by the general public to needy students. DCY is working on preventing social impacts on children and youth such as educating youth on cannabis through the forums, training sessions, and public relations media, and presenting information through influencers with the aid of various public and private partners.
Furthermore, DCY is committed to its “Partnership” principle as many projects and programmes are supported by public and private agencies to raise awareness of children and youth development issues and solutions. DCY fully upholds the Convention on the Rights of the Child including through collaborations with Thai and international organisations such as the Department of Mental Health, Chulalongkorn University, the Equitable Education Fund, Government Housing Bank, CRC Coalition Thailand, UNICEF, Save the Children, UNFPA, Care for Children, ASEAN, and other foundations.
Lastly, the “Participation” principle means inviting children and youth to become part of the Adolescent Participation Curriculum Network in collaboration with UNICEF as well as 8,778 Children and Youth Councils of Thailand with online surveys, training workshops and the Children and Youth Assembly which defines the issues discussed by children and youth themselves.
DCY has adopted information technology systems in its work for children and youth. For example, the Child Protection Information System (CPIS) allows access to children and family protection in a safe and convenient manner with individualised plans and contextualised tracking systems. Supports include a mobile application and LINE official account at savekidscovid19. There is also a mobile application “Ngern Dek” (เงินเด็ก) to develop the Child Support Grant database to be fully digital to further improve efficiency in fund disbursement in a fast, secure and verifiable manner.
During 2021-2022, DCY has received several awards, reflecting the quality of its personnel and its partners in children and youth protection. The awards include: a Digital Government Award 2021 from the Digital Government Development Agency (Public Organization); a 2021 award for ‘Good’ public service; a moral organisation award 2021; a 2022 special award for excellence in Covid-19 management; and a Certificate of Cyber Safety at the Thailand Cybersecurity Excellence Awards 2022 from the National Cyber Security Agency.
DCY is determined and committed to carrying out its missions to ensure that Thai children and youth are cared for under the government social welfare with proper protection, development, and appropriate support. We are committed to reducing social inequality and helping all vulnerable groups so that children and youth will live in a better society, have more quality of life, and become quality citizens of the world with 21st century skills.
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