Social Protection Ministry observes world Social Work Day with staff luncheon

March 20, 2018

DPI, GUYANA, Tuesday, March 20, 2018

Social workers were today charged to be resilient and strive for the changes they want to see realised in the sector. Entrusting this duty to the workers was Permanent Secretary (PS) of the Ministry of Social Protection, Lorene Baird.

Director of Child Protection Agency collects an award for outstanding work in the social service sector, Ann Greene.

The PS was speaking at a World Social Work Day 2018 luncheon event, to honour and recognise outstanding employees who performed commendably over the years.

Baird explained that this year’s Social Work Day theme correlates with the government’s green strategy and noted the importance of social workers for its execution.

“The execution of the mandate is therefore heavily dependent on human resources. This puts social workers at the core of its resolve. Specifically, it entails leveraging the values and tools of social work to enable individuals to strive and contribute to building equitable, inclusive and sustainable communities at the local, national and global levels”, Baird said.

Deputy Director of the Social Services Department, Abike Benjamin-Samuels applauded the workers, for the vital role they play in catering to the needs of persons in society.

“As biased as this may sound, I really do not know of any other profession that is as involved in addressing the needs of human beings, across the life cycle in so many diverse ways as social workers do”, Benjamin-Samuels noted.

Several persons from the Women Affairs Bureau, Social Security, and Chief Probation Officers were among others who received awards at the event hosted at the Pegasus Hotel.

The event was attended by regional representatives, from across the country. This year’s social work day is being celebrated under the theme, “Promoting Community and Environmental Sustainability.”