Caregiving often involves an enormous amount of work that remains largely unseen by others. People who provide daily care for family members with functional impairments take on significant responsibility, yet often lack the knowledge, practical skills and emotional support they need.
In Latvia, approximately one in six people aged 18 to 74 provides informal care, to a greater or lesser extent, for a person with functional impairments. For many, caring for a family member becomes a second full-time job that has to be balanced with professional life, family responsibilities and their own well-being. Informal caregivers therefore need not only information, but also practical skills and structured support, including knowledge of how to protect themselves from physical and emotional exhaustion.
“Informal caregivers deserve knowledge, practical solutions, psychological support and greater recognition and respect,” emphasised Ilona Jurševska, Director of the Social Integration State Agency (SIVA), at the opening of the Centre.
As part of the EU Recovery Fund-financed “RAITI” project overseen by the Ministry of Welfare, SIVA has established a new Competence Development Centre for people who provide daily care for family members with functional impairments. The Centre was officially opened on 27 August 2026 at SIVA premises in Jūrmala.
At the Competence Development Centre, informal caregivers can acquire and improve the skills needed to care for their family members, learn how to perform everyday care activities more safely and ergonomically, and strengthen their self-care skills. The training covers medical and care-related issues, communication, everyday living, environmental adaptation and ergonomics, caregiver self-care, as well as rights and responsibilities.
One of the Centre’s key advantages is the opportunity to put newly acquired knowledge into practice on site. In the demonstration apartment, caregivers can explore assistive technologies and see how they can help a person maintain greater independence while making everyday caregiving easier. The sensory room, meanwhile, introduces solutions that can help reduce anxiety and promote well-being.
The Centre is also equipped with new assessment and rehabilitation devices, enabling specialists to assess a person’s abilities and needs more objectively and identify the most appropriate solutions. In this way, knowledge, practical training, technology and professional support are brought together in one place.
As Minister for Welfare Reinis Uzulnieks noted at the opening, the establishment of the new Centre marks an important step from occasional support towards a systematic approach to supporting informal caregivers. It represents not only new premises and equipment, but also recognition that care provided within families is work of great importance to society and that the people who undertake it need support.
The new Competence Development Centre is an environment designed around the individual – their safety, dignity and independence. At the same time, it is a place where caregivers themselves can gain knowledge and support, helping to make the everyday care of their family members safer, easier and more humane.
The Competence Development Centre was established within the framework of the EU Recovery Fund project “RAITI – Rehabilitation. Support. Inclusion. Continuing Education.”, overseen by the Ministry of Welfare.
More information:
https://www.lm.gov.lv/lv/jaunums/jurmala-atklats-kompetencu-attistibas-centrs-kura-atbalstu-vares-sanemt-neformalie-aprupetaji
https://www.siva.gov.lv/lv/jaunums/projekts-raiti-praktiski-padomi-tuvinieku-aprupei
https://www.lm.gov.lv/lv/socialas-un-profesionalas-rehabilitacijas-pakalpojumu-sinergiska-attistiba-cilveku-ar-funkcionaliem-traucejumiem-drosumspejas-veicinasanai
Because #EveryPersonMatters
#SocialProtection #RecoveryFund #NextGenerationEU #NextGenEUThe Centre is also equipped with new assessment and rehabilitation devices, enabling specialists to assess a person’s abilities and needs more objectively and identify the most appropriate solutions. In this way, knowledge, practical training, technology and professional support are brought together in one place.
As Minister for Welfare Reinis Uzulnieks noted at the opening, the establishment of the new Centre marks an important step from occasional support towards a systematic approach to supporting informal caregivers. It represents not only new premises and equipment, but also recognition that care provided within families is work of great importance to society and that the people who undertake it need support.
The new Competence Development Centre is an environment designed around the individual – their safety, dignity and independence. At the same time, it is a place where caregivers themselves can gain knowledge and support, helping to make the everyday care of their family members safer, easier and more humane.
The Competence Development Centre was established within the framework of the EU Recovery Fund project “RAITI – Rehabilitation. Support. Inclusion. Continuing Education.”, overseen by the Ministry of Welfare.
More information:
https://www.lm.gov.lv/lv/jaunums/jurmala-atklats-kompetencu-attistibas-centrs-kura-atbalstu-vares-sanemt-neformalie-aprupetaji
https://www.siva.gov.lv/lv/jaunums/projekts-raiti-praktiski-padomi-tuvinieku-aprupei
https://www.lm.gov.lv/lv/socialas-un-profesionalas-rehabilitacijas-pakalpojumu-sinergiska-attistiba-cilveku-ar-funkcionaliem-traucejumiem-drosumspejas-veicinasanai
Because every person matters
#SocialProtection #RecoveryFund #NextGenerationEU #NextGenEU
