– Pope Francis announced 2021 the year of the family – minister Maląg said. – We also hope to ensure that pro-family policy is a matter handled by the broadly understood coalition; not just the government, but also local government, non-governmental organisations, think tanks and plenty of people of good will who act in favour of families.

Minister Marlena Maląg reminded that family lies in the centre of attention of a large number of groups, while the Ministry of Family and Social Policy has been consequently and comprehensively involved in the family policy and establishing common coalition for families. – Family 500+ has changed the perception of social policy and proved that funds allocated towards families are the best investment in the future of our families, our children and our country. Since the beginning of the programme, i.e. since April 2016 until the end of 2020, families have received as much as PLN 134.4 billion, and the support covers nearly 6.5 million children– Minister Maląg stressed.

She also reminded that the task is carried out also by programmes such as “Good Start,” “Toddler+” whose current year’s edition has already launched, family supplementary benefit “Mother 4+” or Big Family Card, providing support to families in numerous areas.

– Due to the action taken by the government, family policy expenditures increase up to 4 percent of the GDP- said Minister Maląg. – investing in a family is a necessity and responsibility of any country which wishes to avoid the “demographic trap” and seek demographic renewal.

– effective family policy is one of the key tasks of local authorities – reminded Barbara Socha, Government Plenipotentiary for Demographic Policy. – They are responsible for the spatial order in their area which has such a great impact on the quality of life. They are a very important partner in the coalition in favour for families. The “Local Government Pro Familia” competition will promote the municipalities that are already effectively working for families. We are developing a pilot program that will allow the local governments which do not yet do that to receive specific help in developing a local pro-family strategy that is relevant to the needs of the population in the given community.

Deputy Minister Socha also reminded the NGOs of the “Family First!” competition. The first edition of the competition proved particularly popular. Over 200 organisations took part. The competition will continue this year.

– The functioning of the wider communities and consequently the entirety of Poland depends on the family – stated Dorota Bojemska, President of the Family Council, which has been active by the Minister of Family for over a year. –The Council set the objective of bringing the family to the centre of attention of the NGOs, local authorities and scientists. We wish to establish an optimal “family brand” model, in favour of its corporate identity, showing profits and positive benefits. She also recalled the consultation program “Poland of Happy Families,” which was carried out in 16 Voivodeships, strengthening cooperation between leaders of family-friendly communities in Poland.

Entries to the “Local Government Pro Familia 2021” competition shall be submitted by 31 March 2021 via e-mail to pro_familia@mrips.gov.plor via https://www.gov.pl/rodzina/samorzad-pro-familia-2021. The address also contains the terms and conditions and competitions documents: a long-term strategy form for local government action in the framework of family policy, an application form and a survey where local authorities respond, among other, to questions regarding budget expenditure on family policies, the utilisation of government programmes aimed at families, or self-allocated entitlements and scholarships. The first step involves evaluation of the completed survey.

10 local governments with the highest number of points in each of the five categories will classify in the second stage (in terms of the size of the municipality). The second stage will involve the analysis of the achievements of the long-term strategy of family-friendly policies. The Competition Board will recommend 3 local governments in each category based on the total number of points received in the first and the second stage. The list of self-governments recommended for the final stage will be published on the website of the Ministry of Family and Social Policy on 7th May 2021.

In the third stage, the Minister of Family and Social Policy, in agreement with the Government Plenipotentiary for Demographic Policy will select one local government in each category that will receive the title of Pro Familia Local Government 2021.

The results will be announced on the occasion of the International Family Day.