Affordable day care centers in capital demanded

Affordable day care centers in capital demanded

ISLAMABAD: Majority working and professional women living in Islamabad on Wednesday have demanded the concerned authorities for ensuring establishment of affordable day care centers.

A report aired by a private news channel, finding suitable childcare during the working hours has become one of the major issues that forces many working women to give up their careers.

As majority of female living in Islamabad basically belong to other parts of the country and they have to face many problems to meet the official and domestic requirements while caring their kids.

Therefore, these working women have no other opportunity to leave their children at private day care centers that charge thousands of rupees per month.

"We are paying over eight thousand rupees to the owner of a day care centers for only one kid", said a working women Tahira Abid.

We both husband and wife are government servants and  are living in a rented house, so it is quite hard for us to spare such amount  out of our monthly salaries, said a another government employee  Samina Ali.

One such facility is run by Social Welfare Organization at the Aabpara Community Center and the other by the Women Development Ministry at its new building near Secretariat.

The shortage of day care centers compel them to pay hefty amounts to their owners as they have no other option to tackle with this problem.

Another working women Yusra Rehman , said non-availability of proper childcare centers is forcing many women to leave their jobs at a time when a  lot of opportunities are opening up for them in every sphere of  life.

It is unfortunate to see many women abandon their careers to take care of their kids in absence of support by their family members and employers as well, she said.

Most of the working women were of the view that establishment of day care centers could help boost performance of the female employees who have been effectively contributing their services towards national development.