City needs welfare office: Official

THE National Capital District should set up an office to look after the welfare of children in the city, says the director of Office of the Child and Family Service Simon Yanis.
“An influx of children seen on the street must be addressed before (they) become a threat to city residents in the next four to five years,” Yanis said. He was asked to explain what his office was doing about children in the city’s street.
“I just returned from Enga last week.
“The provincial government there has approved our operation to work in collaboration with them to ensure that there are no children on the street,” he said.
He welcomed the move by the provincial government to set up a provincial office for the Child and Family Service.
He said there had been talks with city officials in Port Moresby about doing the same. “We all can address this issues of children on the streets, begging or doing sales,” he said.
He said his office was set up after it separated from Department of Community Development Youth and Religion two years ago.
It now has its staff of 63.
“We have a NCD office of child and family services so we have a branch.
“But it used to be an office under the department before we broke away.”