MACAO, May 13 (Xinhua) -- International officials and experts gather here for a regional seminar on social services inaugurated Tuesday to discuss how governments can provide better social services to families.

    The main objective of the seminar, the Regional Seminar on Enhancing Social Services Policies to Strengthen Family Well-being in Asia and the Pacific, is "to assess and review social protection and social services policies in Asia and the Pacific from the family perspective, taking into account the demographic, social, economic and political contexts," said Thelma Kay, chief of emerging social issues division of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

    She made the remarks when delivering a speech at the opening ceremony of the seminar organized by ESCAP, which was attended by around 100 officials and experts from 14 nations and regions.

    "The impacts of globalization, migration, urbanization and social transformation are among the factors posing challenges to the family institution as well as to formal and informal social protection systems," Kay said.

    Being home to nearly two thirds of the world's population, factors, such as delayed marriages, declining fertility, increases of in the rates of separation and divorce, the appearance of new and diverse forms of living arrangements, have contributed to the "unprecedented" changes of family structures and functions in the Asia-Pacific region, according to Kay.

    Therefore, social services policies and programs should recognize the interdependence of family relationships and the resources that families can mobilize to help their members, noted Kay, adding that due to the "public goods" nature of social services, the primary responsibility for financing and delivering them rests with governments.

    The ideas generated by the participants' discussions will contribute to the formulation of a draft regional policy framework for the enhancement of family well-being at the three-day seminar, which was anticipated to provide governments and non-state actors in the region with a practical tool and guideline, according to ESCAP.