THE National Family Commission (NFC), in collaboration with the Mothers’ Union Worldwide Parenting Programme, on Wednesday announced that they will be conducting four parenting workshops across the country in an effort to improve the quality of parenting.

The facilitators of these four workshops were presented with special packages containing relevant materials for carrying out the work programme.
The workshops will be held over a 12-week period in the communities of Diamond/Grove on the East Bank of Demerara, Ithaca in Berbice, Essequibo, and the Georgetown area, with 16 parents/caregivers in each community.
Speaking Wednesday at the Ministry of Labour, Human Services and Social Security, Stabroek, Chairman of the NFC, Dr. Kwame Gilbert noted that the foundation of any stable society is the family, which is the most basic of all social institutions.
He pointed out that the family provides the resources needed for all the other social institutions, and if it is dysfunctional, this will be reflected in all of these other institutions. He added that if the family is strengthened and healed, it can also be expected that deviances that are present will be corrected
Dr. Gilbert took the opportunity to highlight the United Nations declared International Day of Families, which was celebrated on Wednesday last under the theme, “Advancing Social Integration and Intergenerational Solidarity”.
Plugging Public Education
He said that as a commission, they believe that public education is a very vital part of producing sustained behavioural change, and in this regard they decided that one of the areas they would be focusing on is parenting.
He pointed out that recently there has been an escalation in the incidence of violence in the society which has been affecting families, particularly those vulnerable groups, which he defined as women and children.
According to him, while there have been several pieces of legislation in parliament in an attempt to remove these vulnerable groups from situations of violence, legislation will not produce all the changes that are required.
He maintained that behaviour cannot be legislated, but in fact this behaviour can be regulated, and it is this regulatory movement they are seeking to produce through public education, since persons do better if they know better.
Dr. Gilbert informed that they are almost at the point of completing  their first parenting workshop which was conducted in Number 48 Village, Berbice, and they are expecting a graduation in a few days’ time.
According to him, the Guyana Police Force and the Guyana Defence Force have a key role to play in producing behavioural change, particularly among males in their role of parenting, and they will also be working along with the facilitators of these workshops, particularly in the Georgetown area.
He maintained that the commission is very optimistic that they will see the kind of sustained behavioural change they are looking for in the society, and expressed hope that the life of the commission will be extended beyond the first year which ends in July.
Meanwhile, Coordinator of Public Education and Commissioner of the NFC, Mrs. Sheran Harper explained that the participants of the workshops will meet for 2-3 hours, one day per week, and a number of topics and issues affecting family life will be discussed.
These topics include the needs of children, setting boundaries, developing the social security of the child by building his/her self-esteem, keeping children safe, as well as addressing the needs of the teenage group.
According to Mrs. Harper, at the end of the 12-week workshops, there will be a graduation ceremony in each community, and after this the groups will live on as post-parenting groups.
She explained that the groups in each community will elect its own leader and whatever activities are planned in the group would depend on the needs of the people in that community.
Mrs. Harper disclosed that the packages given to the facilitators, who were trained through the Mothers’ Union Worldwide Parenting Programme, contain materials required in delivering the programme.
These materials include the necessary stationery and session handouts which the parents will be allowed to keep at the end of the programme.
Additionally, the facilitators are required to complete several monitoring and evaluation forms in order to gather statistics and have data on file concerning the progress of these parenting groups.