By PNA / Xinhua and U.S. News Agency / Asian

Myanmar President U Thein Sein Monday urged mapping out strategies and work programs for challenging social protection of the country.

Addressing the opening of the national-level Social Protection Conference in Nay Pyi Taw, U Thein Sein stressed the need for the social protection strategy framework to have comprehensiveness as well as all-inclusiveness and be in conformity with the government-sponsored national socio-economic development strategies.

He called for assistance and support of international organizations including the United Nations, non-governmental organizations, domestic and external humanitarian organizations, stressing the important role of them in social protection coverage.

Noting that the government has been implementing the rural development and poverty alleviation strategy since taking office, he pointed out that the country’s poverty rate is still high when compared with regional counterparts and all-round socio-economic development of low-income people is Myanmar’s priority task.

He disclosed that the country is in the process of enacting a law to fix minimum wage for workers to enjoy basic social rights they deserve.

The two-day social protection conference, jointly organized by Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement and Ministry of Labor and resident UNICEF, addresses issues of poverty and vulnerability and promote equity in society of Myanmar.

Drawing on lessons and experiences of other countries, the conference outlined that it will explore options for institutional coordination on social protection, strategies and processes for developing a social protection system in Myanmar, and ways to link social protection with poverty reduction and rural development strategies.