PUTRAJAYA, May 29 — Social work services will be elevated as professional services under the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (KPWKM) Strategic Plan 2021-2025, said its minister Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun.
She said KPWKM also formulated the Social Work Profession Bill for the purpose of having a committed and professional workforce and creating good governance in the field of social work.
“The social work profession has become very significant to meet the increasingly complex and dynamic needs of clients, especially in the new era of challenges brought by technological advances and also the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic that hit the world,” she when speaking virtually to close the National Symposium on Social Work 2021 today.
The three-day symposium, themed Strengthening Social Solidarity and Global Connectivity, began on May 27.
Rina said KPWKM’s plan to professionalise social work was in line with ASEAN’s collaboration and commitment in strengthening social work services through the Hanoi Declaration on Strengthening Social Work Towards a Cohesive and Responsive ASEAN Community which was endorsed by ASEAN leaders in 2020.
She said the Malaysian Social Institute (ISM), a training centre that offers various courses in social work, had trained almost 5,000 employees of the Social Welfare Department (JKM) since its establishment in 2002 until 2020.
“I believe that the knowledge and skills from the field of social work have been fully utilised by JKM staff in planning, developing and implementing social welfare services for various target groups who need assistance,” she said.
