Government officials at demographic summit: Having children a matter of values

Supporting and strengthening families is not just about finances, the state secretary for family and youth affairs said at the 3rd Budapest Demographic Summit on Friday. Starting a family and having children is a matter of values and culture, Katalin Novák said.

Novák said the summit’s mission was to find family-friendly solutions to demographic problems. This is why the event has brought together participants who see solutions in families, she said.

She said “genuine alliances” had begun to form at the forum and it was possible their achievements would be presented at the next demographic summit in 2021.

Csaba Dömötör, a cabinet office state secretary, said family policy would define the future. “Family policy must not be choked by political correctness. It must be discussed openly without taboos,” he said.

Besides providing needed support, it is also important to make the public well disposed towards the concept of the family, Dömötör said, adding that this required role models.