The Women’s General Association of Macau (commonly known as Fu Luen in Cantonese) launched yesterday a parents’ Chinese-language guide to sex education for three-to-12-year-olds in early childhood, primary school and adolescent years, aiming to work with the community to promote the booklet, which is free of charge, to Macau’s parent-child families.

The Fu Luen Family Service Centre celebrated its 25^th anniversary at the Women’s General Association of Macau’s premises on Rua do Campo yesterday, with a raft of activities, including workshops, booth games, sharing of retrospective videos and a children’s talent show, enabling participants to review the centre’s work over the past years, and gain an in-depth understanding of its services.

Addressing yesterday’s celebratory event, Women’s General Association of Macau President Un Sio Leng said in a speech that parents in recent years have grown “very concerned” about the physical and mental development of their children and the importance of sex education in the family and, therefore, in response to the community’s needs, the Fu Luen Family Service Centre launched in 2009 the “Calling for Love - Family Sex Education Promotion Project” to encourage parents to promote sex education in the family with their children, while also organising various online and offline activities regarding the issue on a regular basis.

Wong Man I, a representative of the Fu Luen Family Service Centre, told reporters on the sidelines of the event that the booklet, mainly targeting three-to-12-year-olds in early childhood, primary school and adolescent years, features parents’ “myths” about sex education, response skills and sex education knowledge, as well as practical advice. The booklet aims to equip parents with more effective communication skills in sex education so that they can respond to their children’s questions about sex while using games to help their children understand more about sex education in an interactive way.

Wong pointed out that even though parents of the current generation have raised their awareness of the importance of sex education for their children, with the advancement of information on the internet, parents still often find it difficult to talk about issues such as dating between the two sexes, pornography and internet dating, or they do not have sufficient knowledge to educate their children about such issues.

According to Fu Luen, its family service centre organised over 50 events between 2019 and 2023, providing services for 530 families.

Parents and guardians can pick up the booklet at the centre during office hours including Saturday. Normally, the centre is closed on Sunday. 

Parents and children queue up for a booth game celebrating the Women’s General Association of Macau (commonly known as Fu Luen in Cantonese) Family Service Centre’s 25th anniversary, at the Women’s General Association of Macau’s premises on Rua do Campo yesterday. – Photo: Yuki Lei