At a press briefing on Monday, Minister of Human Capacities Zoltán Balog said that from Thursday Hungary will host a three-day international demographics forum in Budapest.
Mr. Balog said that Hungary is initiating international dialogue on how to combat Europe’s population decline. The conference will be opened by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Speakers will include European ministers and politicians, and there will be messages from Polish president Andrzej Duda and Pope Francis.
Mr. Balog said that in Hungary’s opinion immigration is not the solution to the problem: internal solutions must be found through supporting and strengthening families. The message of the forum is that “strong families are the foundation of strong nations”, the minister said.
Minister of State for Family and Youth Affairs Katalin Novák said that, in addition to the professional aspect, the conference also intends to be a celebration for families, with free cultural events for families on Saturday, its final day.
During the press briefing Mrs. Novák also introduced the recently launched family site csalad.hu, which gathers useful information on various family benefits. The site will also contain the latest information on the Budapest Demographic Forum.