Daily Times

KARACHI: Sindh Minister for Social Welfare and Chairperson of Sindh Child Protection Authority Shamim Mumtaz has directed to speed up the process of framing rules of Sindh Child Protection Authority to functionalize it at the earliest.

She was presiding over the 3rd meeting of Sindh Child Protection Authority at her office on Wednesday.

Members of SCPA, including Special Assistant to Chief Minister Sindh for Women Development Erum Khalid, Secretary Social Welfare Shariq Ahmed, Chief Child Protection UNICEF, Sarah Colemen, Jabeen Fatima Child Protection Specialist UNICEF, Sheeza Ahmed, Sidrah Jameel Legal Counsel, Zia Ahmed of Madadgar Helpline, Naeem Chandio M&E Officer Plan International Pakistan, Anjum Mehmood advocate, Syed Mohsin Ali Shah Additional Secretary Home, Altaf-ur-Rahman, Deputy Secretary Law and others attended the meeting.

Shamim Mumtaz said that process of formulating rules for the authority should be completed within 15 days and presented in the next meeting for approval.

The minister told the meeting that the Sindh Child Protection Authority Act has been passed by the Sindh Assembly to ensure the rights of the children who are in need of special protection and attention.

She stressed that children were the soft targets and vulnerable segment of society, adding that it was the responsibility of government as well civil society to protect them from physical and psychological violence, sexual abuse, commercial sexual exploitation, worst form of child labour and beggary, human trafficking within and outside Pakistan, misuse for drug trafficking. The minister, however, emphasised that while formulating rules ambiguities and confusion should be removed to ensure the clarity.

Chief Child Protection UNICEF Sarah Coleman suggested that the authority should be an advisory, monitoring and oversight body whereas service delivery should rest with the social welfare department. She quoted examples of Punjab and KPK and said that there child protection authorities had failed to achieve set goals in both the provinces, adding that while Balochistan had done better in this regard.

Earlier, legal counsel Sidrah Jameel gave a detailed briefing to the meeting on the progress of formulating rules for the authority. The next meeting of the authority will be held on 29thAugust to finalise the rules.