All toddlers aged under 6 may count
PUBLISHED: 25 Nov 2024 at 04: 59
Facts to be sent to the government regarding the proposal to develop the first youth development program are being discussed by the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security.
Minister of Social Development and Human Security, Varawut Silpa-archa, said the plan is an improved version of the latest plan, which provides children, from newborns to six years of age, from poor families a regular income of 600 ringgit per child to maintain sufficient funds for their development.
Mr. Varawut stated that the proposed plan may expand the 600-baht regular allowance to include all children under the age of six.
The number of available consumers is estimated at 3.2 million, he said.
The proposal has been forwarded to the cabinet by the Department of Children and Youth (DCY ).
If approved, the system may be implemented in the 2026 governmental time.
But, he said, the government will have a last say in the matter.
The plan, he said, may require an additional expenditure of 6.7 billion ringgit to handle all the recipients, saying volume is relatively small compared to other techniques.
Given the country’s declining baby charge, he said the program may be put into practice to ensure that all children have proper early childhood development.
The minister claimed that the public had weighed in on the plan, and that most people who had inquired about it preferred that the present recipients’ allowance be increased to 1,200 baht.
In 2015, the child development aid program was launched. Kids from poor families received 400 ringgit per month up until the age of one under the program.
The salary was increased to 600 baht per month after the plan was expanded to include children up to the age of six.
For a family to count for the plan, the household’s earnings may not reach 100, 000 ringgit per annum.
In order to better protect young trainees from harassment and abuse at religious institutions, Mr. Varawut claimed that the government is working with the Department of Religious Affairs.
He added that the government will assist and counsel those who were abused, and their families, by opening a child protection center at Wat Tham Tako in Lop Buri’s Muang district as a model for improving child safety.