[ARCHIVO] President Bachelet presides over the launch of the Chile Cares program

The President of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, the Minister of Women and Gender Equity, Claudia Pascual, and the Socio-Cultural Director of the Presidency, Paula Forttes, went to the municipality of Santiago to launch the Chile Cuida (Chile Cares) Program.

The program is designed to provide support to senior citizens who present moderate to severe dependence, to support their families and caregivers, and to train and provide jobs for unemployed women and those seeking to improve their job situation.

The pilot phase of Chile Cares began in 2015 in the Lo Hermida and La Faena sectors of Peñalolén, and four new municipalities were added in 2016: Recoleta, Santiago, Independencia and Rancagua. A total of 800 families have benefited from the program so far.

“These are projects implemented with affection and dedication alongside people, not just for them but with them, listening to their needs and how they want things to be done. The needs may be very similar, but the circumstances can be very different, so one must seek the right solution for the specific circumstances”, President Bachelet remarked.

She added, “The Chile Cares Program has grown and borne fruit, adding families to help and accompany more people in more municipalities”. During her address, the President explained that a study conducted by the Office of the Undersecretary of Finance found that over 1.4 million women who want to work do not do so because they are the main caregivers of their children and parents.

The President explained that the program has three objectives designed to address this challenge:

• To offer quality services provided by individuals who have been trained to carry out this work.
• To allow for a space of rest for women who have taken on care responsibilities within those families.
• To generate work for women who are interested in and have a vocation for serving others and have trained to provide this type of care with the appropriate knowledge.

President Bachelet added, “long-term care facilities and day centers for older adults are being built to support this system throughout our country. We are a country that is growing, and we must engage in that growth hand in hand with senior citizens”.

She also explained that the government is working to build a network of 16 long-term care facilities and day centers for older people.

“This is the way to do government, to move forward without leaving anyone’s needs aside, looking at how to support all of our fellow Chileans so that we are all better, so that we can live better and so that we can have, as I always like to say, a life with respect and dignity, which is something that we all deserve, including those of us who are senior citizens”, President Bachelet noted.