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- Русский
The reason for my visit to the Nicosia Multipurpose Centre is to see first hand the important work that is being produced in relation to social policy. I am very pleased to see programmes being implemented in relation to social policy, in relation to social integration, there are structures for childcare and afternoons. I learned today that childcare services are being extended on Saturdays to facilitate parents in relation to their work, but also elderly migrants.
I believe in synergies with local government. Local government is the institution closest to the citizens. More than all of us, local government, municipalities, communities, know the challenges and problems faced by their citizens, so that we too can be closer to their needs and respond precisely to them. And through these synergies we will strengthen our cooperation and our relationship even more, so that we can offer as much support, assistance and care as possible to our citizens and especially to our vulnerable fellow human beings, who seek and need the help and support of the state. These programmes lay the foundations so that they can be continued after the funding runs out and are also important again with the support of the state. I would like to assure you that consultations are already taking place with the Union of Cyprus Municipalities, with the Union of Cyprus Communities and this consultation is beginning, so that these programmes can continue in the context of local reform in terms of social support and integration of citizens.
The modernization and upgrading of the Minimum Guaranteed Income (MGA) is an issue which is really a priority. Because the EI, which is necessary and important to support our vulnerable citizens, must be made both faster, more efficient and fairer after almost 10 years of operation. And in this context, among many other things, social intervention is strengthened. And when we say social intervention, we mean not only channelling these people into the labour market in various ways - as we will ask the Mayor of Nicosia and in cooperation with the Local Government - but also by creating training and skills enhancement programmes and in cooperation with ANAD, with which we have already been in contact and in consultation, so that personalised programmes are created for the beneficiaries of the EEP. We will be in contact with other institutions, with the Post-secondary Institutes of Vocational Education and Training and with universities so that, in addition to the subsidy, we can achieve the objective of social inclusion of all beneficiaries, which is one of the main objectives of the European Union.
The modernisation and upgrading of the VET scheme has already started. In addition to the social intervention, which is extremely important and which I mentioned earlier, because I put local government in this context, we have already proceeded to strengthen the control section of the EEE.
We have also already proceeded to develop some tools, such as a robotic application, which automates procedures to make the process faster and easier, while also freeing up manpower. A "Risk Assessment Tool" has also been developed and is available to the Welfare Benefits Management Service, a tool, if you will, that categorizes and prioritizes claims so that we know who will be those who need immediate intervention.
In addition, the electronic application of the EIS is going live this month, which also simplifies processes and makes them faster.
At the same time, internal rearrangements have been made to strengthen the EIS department and we expect that the processes of strengthening the EIS staff will be completed with decisions taken by the previous government. At the same time, a study on medium and long-term actions in relation to the modernisation and upgrading of the EEE is also underway.
(ΘΘ/EΠ/EΧΡ)
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