100% Coverage of Preschool Education
In Belarus, 20% of the population, or one-fifth, are children. As noted by the Chief Specialist of the Department of Social, Educational, and Ideological Work of the Ministry of Education, Elena Voitekhovich, the country has established a solid legal framework to protect their legitimate interests. The state gives priority to the upbringing of children in the family.
In Belarus, high-quality preschool education is provided by state institutions, which guarantee equal opportunities for education and upbringing for all children of early and preschool age.
— In many countries, the education and upbringing of children up to three years old fall under the competence of the ministries of health and social protection, which essentially serve as supervision and care. In Belarus, this is a full-fledged educational process. About 53.2% of children in this age group are covered by preschool education. For comparison, in 33 countries around the world, this figure is below 20%, according to Elena Voitekhovich.
By the way, over the last few years, Belarus has had one of the highest rates of preschool education in the world, with 100% of kids aged 3 to 6 covered. All five-year-olds are involved in getting ready for school.
Supporting Gifted Students
The country has created conditions for all students to receive a quality general secondary education, regardless of the type of educational institution (school, gymnasium, lyceum) and its location (urban or rural). All general secondary education institutions may open classes offering advanced study of specific subjects — specialised classes for grades 10-11. Subjects are determined taking into account the wishes of students. For early career guidance for children, the network of specialised vocational classes is being expanded in schools, with 28,500 senior pupils enrolled in the current academic year. These are classes with a focus on teaching, agriculture, military and patriotic education, engineering, sports and medicine.
All conditions are in place for the development of students’ individual characteristics. In particular, a national Olympiad is held in 18 academic subjects. About 1,500 students take part in the final stage, and about 650 participants are awarded diplomas. Based on the results of the national Olympiad, teams are formed to represent Belarus at international subject Olympiads. Last year, Belarusian schoolchildren took part in 13 international competitions. Of the 63 participants in international Olympiads, 56 (almost 89%) became winners and prize-winners, winning 18 gold, 13 silver and 25 bronze medals.
Margarita Develtovskaya, Head of the Scientific Laboratory at the RSPC «Mother and Child», reminded everyone of the importance of caring for the health of every child. In the field of healthcare, Belarus is among the countries with the lowest infant mortality rates and ranks 35th out of 175 countries in the ranking of countries with healthy and happy childhoods. The RSPC «Mother and Child» receives the most difficult patients from all over the country and helps women with serious illnesses give birth to healthy children.
New in Legislation
Svetlana Odintsova, Member of the Standing Committee on Health Care, Physical Culture, Family and Youth Policy of the House of Representatives, spoke about the innovations in legislation that are expected in the near future.
— Protecting the rights and legitimate interests of children is an important social task for our society. It is a national priority. Adults have a special responsibility for preserving the health of children and raising them in a way that ensures their full spiritual, moral and physical development. Belarus is implementing a consistent state policy aimed at ensuring that children grow up and are raised in a favourable environment that excludes threats to their life and health, the deputy noted.
A key place in this work is occupied by the improvement of legislation on the rights of the child, which should not only enshrine the rights of children, but also ensure their proper protection and defence. These tasks are primarily addressed by the updated Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, according to which the family, motherhood, fatherhood and childhood are under the protection of the state, and parents and persons replacing them are obliged to raise children and care for their health.
On January 1, 2025, the Law «On Amendments to Laws on the Regulation of Marriage and Family Relations» came into force.
— It strengthens the responsibility of parents who fail to fulfill their obligations to raise and support their children. It also details the powers of state bodies and organizations that provide state protection measures for children and coordinates their joint actions on all procedural issues related to protection, — Svetlana Odintsova reminded.
The Law «On Amendments to Laws on Child Protection» is being prepared for its second reading. The draft law was developed to improve legislation in the field of children’s rights, including by strengthening guarantees of state protection of the rights and legitimate interests of children.
Elena Kravets
