By Sheeda Fathil
SHAH ALAM, Sept 13 — Registration requirements for childcare centres in Selangor will be standardised and streamlined to facilitate approvals by the Social Welfare Department (JKM).
State executive councillor for women empowerment and welfare, Anfaal Saari, said a special committee formed in August will oversee the process to ensure smoother registration, with a focus on resolving technical issues.
“The authority for enforcement and regularisation lies with JKM, not under the state government. However, Selangor will still work to simplify the registration process for childcare centres.
“We will review, standardise and streamline the registration requirements, especially from technical agencies, through the special committee. This is not about directly registering the centres,” she said when contacted.
Anfaal said the registration process for these centres typically takes around six months if operators meet the requirements and submit the necessary documents as determined by JKM.
Separately, Anfaal said her team would discuss with JKM the implementation of mental health screenings and background checks for caregivers at childcare centres to ensure the safety of children.
“In addition to ensuring the installation of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at the centres, JKM will also conduct monitoring every six months for registered centres as a preventive measure,” she added.
In a previous interview with SelangorTV, Selangor JKM assistant director Roziah Osman revealed that 226 childcare centres in the state are still unregistered under the department.
To address this, she said awareness programs are being actively conducted to ensure that operators take the necessary actions to avoid unwanted incidents.
Previously, issues of negligence, abandonment and abuse of infants and children by caregivers at childcare centres have gone viral, with some cases leading to fatalities.
