BUKEJLOVIĆ: SRPSKA CHOOSES FAMILY - AMONG REGION'S LEADERS IN SUPPORT FOR THIRD AND FOURTH CHILDREN

BANJA LUKA, AUGUST 25 /SRNA/ - The family is the strength of Republika Srpska, and every new child is its future, which is why the child protection system, in addition to the rights granted to every newborn child, also recognizes families who decide to have a third or fourth child, Republika Srpska National Assembly Deputy Speaker Nina Bukejlović said.

On the occasion of the Srpska Loves You campaign, through which the Office of Republika Srpska President will, in the coming period, present the rights and measures that currently make up the family support system in Republika Srpska, Bukejlović told SRNA that a special pronatalist allowance of BAM 600 is provided for every third child, while the allowance for a fourth child amounts to BAM 450. She added that this entitlement is available regardless of the family’s financial status or the place of child’s birth. "Support for larger families does not end there. Unemployed mothers receive a maternity allowance for a third and every subsequent child for 18 months, instead of the 12 months provided for the first and second child. As of July 1 this year, the maternity allowance amounts to BAM 746 per month. This means that the policy of supporting childbirth is not based on a single measure, but on a system of various rights through which Republika Srpska seeks to make parenthood easier and support families who want to have more children," Bukejlović stressed. She said that the demographic challenge facing society cannot be resolved with a single decision or overnight, but that Republika Srpska can and must have a clear commitment to doing more for families every year. "To support births. To make parenthood easier. To protect the family. Because without children, Republika Srpska has no future," Bukejlović said.