In the complex ecosystem of social welfare in the Canary Islands, some names carry weight due to their track record, while others do so because of necessity. The recent agreement published between the Government of the Canary Islands and the Yrichen Foundation (chaired by Jorge Hernández Duarte) is a declaration of intent: the implementation of court-ordered measures for minors cannot be a cold administrative procedure, but rather a specialized form of "social surgery."
The agreement, which will come into force on January 1, 2026, and will extend until the end of 2027, focuses on the implementation of non-custodial measures. But it does so with a key geographical and technical nuance for the south of the island.
The Attention Triangle: Telde, Las Palmas and San Bartolomé
Although the main operations headquarters are located in Telde, the agreement is crystal clear: the focus is shifting to the south. San Bartolomé de Tirajana is consolidating its position as a critical intervention hub. This is no coincidence. The reality for minors in the south, often marked by the volatility of the tourist environment and the problems associated with addictions or the dysfunctional use of ICTs, requires psychologists and educators to be on the ground.
The program, named SATEMA Gran Canaria (Specialized Therapeutic Care Service in the Open Environment), has a structure of 37 places that will serve as a buffer for the judicial system. The most important aspect for families in the south is its flexibility: the agreement even allows for cases from Fuerteventura to be handled, highlighting the "reference center" status of the technical infrastructure in this part of the archipelago.
Elite ratios for a complex reality
What sets this agreement apart is its strictness regarding staffing ratios. In a sector where precarious working conditions and overcrowding are frequently denounced, Yrichen and the Regional Ministry of Candelaria Delgado have agreed that each psychologist will see a maximum of 12 to 15 minors. This is a figure typically found in private clinics, but applied to the public justice system. The team is not merely administrative; it is a rapid response unit: full-time psychologists, social workers, laboratory technicians, and even consulting psychiatrists. The aim is to address comorbidity: that murky intersection between mental health and substance abuse that is often the root of a minor's criminal responsibility.
Since 2018, Yrichen has been working in southern Gran Canaria. The 2018-2021 Municipal Addiction Plan relied on Yrichen's management to develop prevention programs, implementing an ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) Assistant Program. This program trains young people about the benefits and problems associated with new technologies, and these young people, in turn, inform and train primary school students through the various schools in the municipality.
The president of the Yrichen Foundation, Jorge Hernández Duarte, and the mayor of San Bartolomé de Tirajana, Marco Aurelio Pérez, inaugurated a fully renovated center in El Tablero, adapted to the needs of those seeking help. "There has always been a concern and a commitment to addiction treatment in San Bartolomé de Tirajana, but we believe that by reaching an agreement with Yrichen, we can better leverage the synergies of the services they offer in other projects of this kind, leading to improved results," stated Marco Aurelio Pérez at the presentation of the El Tablero Addiction Treatment Unit (UAD). The mayor emphasized that Yrichen has the full capacity to carry out this municipal project, highlighting that above all, "it is an organization made up of people who love the work they do."
