BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

HAVING a family-friendly environment, along with a conducive working environment, can strengthen the family, said the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports (MCYS).

Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Pekerma Laila Diraja Dato Seri Setia Hj Hazair Hj Abdullah joined other ministers from the East Asian Region to speak on issues relating to the family during the recently concluded 6th East Asia Ministerial Forum on Families (EAMFF).

In his statement, YB Pehin Dato Hj Hazair said recognising the influential impact of a cohesive and resilient family is important in shaping future generations to contribute meaningfully to the community, society and national development.

He said that an appreciation of family values should be instilled at an early age through the school curriculum, adding that Brunei has already made steps to ensure that such values are included in the school curriculum and the National Youth Service Programme.

The minister reiterated that the strengthening of the family institution with a family-friendly social environment has always been a part of the sultanate’s development agenda as reflected in Vision 2035 along with the National Development Plan.

The creation of such an environment would enable members of society to further harmonise and strengthen their work-family balance as well as sharing the responsibilities of raising children and supporting families at a social level, read the statement issued by the MCYS.

A conducive working environment and regulations in the workplace are factors that Brunei has taken into consideration where, as a result, Brunei has introduced various regulations and programmes to promote work-life balance said YB Pehin Dato Hj Hazair.

The two-day ministerial forum carried the theme, ‘Creating Family-Friendly Social Environment’ and it saw the participation of ministers from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Timor Leste, Vietnam and host country, South Korea.

The forum adopted the Seoul Declaration that outlined 12 operative action lines to strengthen and support efforts towards creating a family-friendly social environment where the ministers agreed to consolidate the EAMFF and the East Asia Gender Equality Ministerial Meeting in 2016.

The Brunei Times