Indonesia expands child-friendly spaces to support mental health

3 hours ago

Pangkalpinang (ANTARA) – Indonesia is expanding child-friendly spaces and strengthening inter-ministerial cooperation to address rising mental health problems among children and adolescents, Population and Family Development Minister Wihaji said Thursday.

“Currently, 34.9 percent of our children are experiencing mental health problems,” Wihaji said after inspecting a Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) service unit in Pangkalbalam, Pangkalpinang, Bangka Belitung Islands.

The ministry is working with the ministries of Communications and Digital Affairs, Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, Primary and Secondary Education, and Religious Affairs to expand the Child-Friendly Spaces initiative.

“We have an obligation to educate all citizens, especially children and adolescents, to improve the well-being of the nation’s future generations,” Wihaji said.

He said the ministry is strengthening the Generation Planning (GenRe) program and Child Ambassadors initiative to promote mental health awareness and provide peer support for young people.

“GenRe members and child ambassadors are more effective in promoting mental health because teenagers tend to listen more to their peers than to adults,” he said.

Wihaji said rapid advances in information technology have created new challenges, requiring the government to adopt new approaches to addressing youth mental health.

“In this new era, we must develop new strategies and approaches to address children’s mental health challenges,” he said.