TEHRAN – The secretary general of Saudi Arabia’s Family Affairs Council, Maimoonah Al Khalil, and the Qatari Social Development and Family Minister, Maryam bint Ali bin Nasser Al Misnad, have welcomed Iran’s family support programs.

The officials held separate meetings with Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, Ensieh Khazali, on the sidelines of the 68th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York which is taking place from March 11-22.

While expressing satisfaction with Iran's plan to provide family counseling, Al Khalil, said: “In the past, if couples encountered a problem, they would refer to their families and acquaintances for help and advice.

However, societies have changed due to the emergence of new conditions, such as cultural interactions, social media, artificial intelligence, and technologies.”

Women spend long hours at work. Balancing work and family responsibilities is a major task that requires training and support from the government, she noted.

Khazali, for her part, said the main objectives of the national family counseling program are to pave the way and provide the chance for the promotion of women and family and their protection from harm.

The family counseling program is being implemented for the first five years of marriage in order to avoid the harms of divorce, she added.

Counseling is free for all couples in the first year of marriage, but it will be free for needy couples for five years, she highlighted.

Many countries agree on family support

The Qatari minister said Islamic countries and even many non-Muslim countries agree on the issue of family support.

Al Misnad went on to say that the Family Charter was prepared for this reason in the Ministry of Social and Family Development and it has been signed by a large number of Asian countries.

Khazali, for her part, said that Iran is compiling the family document. She proposed reviewing the documents of the two countries to reach a joint document on the family.

She also stressed expanding business interactions and exchanges between the women of the two countries focusing on employment, entrepreneurship, and economy. Both ideas were welcomed by the Qatari side.

Women and families in national development plan

The seventh national development plan (2023-2027) which is scheduled to be presented to the parliament for final approval is mainly focused on "strengthening the pillars of family and removing obstacles to the growth and prosperity of women."

"Increasing the birth rate to at least 2.5 within five years with comprehensive support for childbearing and providing incentives” are other objectives of the plan.

In this regard, "promoting the correct pattern of choosing a spouse and encouraging timely, easy and sustainable marriage", "boosting non-governmental organizations supporting women and children", "improving women's abilities and job skills" and "increasing the fertility rate" are prioritized.

Each of the executive bodies in charge of women and families has duties to achieve the mentioned four goals.

MT/MG