Education officials receive briefing on youth apps

Macau’s education officials, among other social icons, have been briefed about which mobile apps are currently popular among the younger generations, officials from the Education and Youth Development Bureau (DSEDJ) revealed yesterday after a Youth Affairs Committee plenary.
They were introduced to such apps by Lee Kwok Hoo, Director of the Macau Social Services Office of the Sheng Kung Hui (SKH); Un Lai Mui; SKH’s Service Coordinator and Iao Meng Lei, SKH’s Social Worker. The entity is an organizational member of the Committee.
However, the officials refrained from revealing what those apps are.
Cheong Man Fai, Chief of the Youth Department of the DSEDJ, admitted that the use of mobile apps to make new friends is inevitable in today’s world. However, she stressed that these apps may pose risks to young people because there may be incorrect values or traps associated with the apps.
The comment aligns with the opinion of one of her superintendents, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Elsie Ao Ieong U, who replied to lawmaker Sulu Sou’s spoken inquiry on Monday regarding youths obtaining negative views, values and opinions on the Internet.
Some members of the Committee demanded that the SKH steps up its work in this respect.
The representatives from the SKH also discussed and exchanged opinions with members on promoting the development of young people’s physical and mental health.
The members expressed that they paid close attention to the development of youths’ mental and physical health and hoped to bring together the strengths of the various social sectors in order to safeguard their well-being.
Wong Ka Ki, Chief of the Department of Non-Higher Education of the DSEDJ, expressed hope that services can be more appropriate, with conversations involving frontline workers and the policies and training programs set forth afterwards.
Subsequently, Wong presented work related to the “Working group for monitoring the mental and physical health of young people – Transporting love.” This working group was founded in January 2021 in the hopes of achieving a mechanism for joint collaboration in prevention, control and action, to provide joint support for spiritual development among youths.
At the press conference following the committee plenary, the official refrained from going into detail on the topics that were discussed. So far, with regards to young people’s psychological needs, the DSEDJ relies on non-government organizations’ efforts, including the Caritas Macau’s Life Hotline, as well as the SKH.
On the other hand, the DSEDJ will focus on policy making, including the injection of life education into the curriculum in the hopes of disseminating self-caring values. Cross-departmental administration, according to the DSEDJ officials, is also a priority.
Lao Wan Seong, Deputy Commander-General of the Unitary Police Services (SPU), presented on the public recruitment of civil protection volunteers. Lao said that the SPU is recruiting between March 29 and April 27 for 80 vacancies in supplementary civil protection work. Locals aged between 18 and 55 years are eligible to apply.