On Monday, Mijas became the host venue,at the Manuel España Theatre (Las Lagunas), for the Third Andalusian Congress on Families, Children, Adolescents and Youth, a space for dialogue and reflection that focused on leisure and free time as tools to improve family well-being. Organised by the Regional Ministry of Social Inclusion, Youth, Families and Equality of the Junta de Andalucía (Regional Government of Andalusia), the congress brought together families, professionals and organisations from the social, educational, health and associative sectors to examine the "challenges and opportunities" in promoting healthy, inclusive leisure that fosters emotional bonds within families.

 

At the congress, the mayoress of Mijas, Ana Mata (PP), highlighted the role of families as key to learning values and emphasised the importance of safeguarding childhood and adolescence. "We have to put all our energy into addressing leisure-related situations in childhood and adolescence and, above all, provide families with the right tools so that, collectively, we can apply them within our environment", said the mayoress.

The minister for Social Inclusion, Youth, Families and Equality, Loles López, also emphasised the role of families as "schools of values" and advocated instilling work–life balance and shared responsibility as a way to advance equality. "The internet does not teach values; these are instilled by the family, which is why we also thought it was important to address healthy leisure at this conference. We will also talk about another issue, equality, because without work-life balance and shared responsibility there is no equality", stressed the minister, who also warned that “modern life cannot be limited to social networks; good childhood memories are built within the family, away from screens".

Among the initiatives promoted by the Ministry of Social Inclusion in this area, López highlighted the First Andalusian Pact for Work–Life Balance and Shared Responsibility, which includes 44 measures and a 55 million euros investment, and the Iguales en Igualdad app, which provides co-educational materials developed by the Junta de Andalucía to address discrimination, inequality and violence affecting women and girls.

Presentations and roundtables

The event opened with a keynote lecture by psychiatrist Luis Gutiérrez Rojas on the benefits of good use of leisure and free time with the family, alongside other talks and interdisciplinary roundtables on the importance of shared leisure dynamics, featuring representatives from the judicial, educational, health and social sectors. Among them was retired family judge José Luis Utrera, who has lived in Mijas for more than 30 years. During the morning, Utrera took part in a roundtable discussion in which he highlighted the importance of "better managing family breakdown conflicts to prevent the suffering of many children from divorced parents, which can stop them from taking part in leisure and free-time activities".

Meanwhile, Cosette Franco, PhD in Social Sciences and director of the Albores Association, who moderated another roundtable, emphasised "two fundamental challenges we face: one, to really show that young people are powerful, that they are passionate and that they have aspirations. And the second challenge, I believe, is to share the joint responsibility we are talking about, which is, in fact, everyone's job to educate".

 

The congress also hosted the presentation of the study 'Family policies in Spain in response to new challenges in the welfare system', prepared by researchers from the University of Malaga, as well as a roundtable on good practices, where organisations, administrations and social groups shared successful experiences in promoting inclusive and family leisure.

After spending the morning there, we learned a tip on how to ensure leisure is always healthy for the whole family. This comes from Virginia Fernández, psychologist in the Adolescents Department of Proyecto Joven at Proyecto Hombre Sevilla, who participated in another roundtable: "Clear rules and boundaries are fundamental. It is necessary to be aware that risks exist, and it is not a question of waiting for time to pass for a child to mature. Children are not like apples, they will not mature on their own if we do not help them to mature through these rules and boundaries".

The event was also attended by the secretary general for Families, Equality, Gender Violence and Diversity, Concha Cardesa; the director general for Children, Adolescents and Youth, Paco Mora; the director general of the Andalusian Youth Institute (IAJ); Pedro Antonio Ramírez; the director general of Benefits, Aid and Services, Clara Requena; the director of the Andalusian Institute for Women (IAM), Olga Carrión; and the regional delegate for Social Inclusion, Youth, Families and Equality in Malaga, Ruth Sarabia, among other authorities.

Share it with this link: https://mijasint.com/?a=35993