ISLAMABAD, Nov 20: The government is endeavouring to meet all challenges being faced in achieving development goals for children. Additional Secretary Ministry of Social Welfare and Special Education M. Noor Saghir Khan said this while speaking at study launching ceremony on “Violence Against Children” organised by Ministry of Social Welfare and Special Education to mark the day with international community.

Managing Director Pakistan Baitul Mal Brig (retired) Mohammad Sarfraz, Director National Commission for Child Welfare and Development (NCCWD) Mohammad Hassan Mangi and other senior officials of Ministry of Social Welfare and Special Education, Unicef and Save the Children, US, were also present.

Speaking on the occasion, Noor Saghir said: “Children were our future, a future that is in our hands which needs to be protected from all kinds of exploitation and abuse.”

The world today is more equipped with knowledge, resources and legal imperatives to give every child the best possible start in life, in family environment that offers love, the care and the nurturing children need to grow, to learn and develop to the fullest.

Highlighting the plan and project of the ministry, the additional secretary said: “We have prepared a comprehensive National Plan of Action for Children, through a consultative process with all stakeholders and children.

“We are also working on care, protection and development of children in institutional care in collaboration with Save the Children UK.”

He said the overall objective of the project was to develop standards for the protection and care of children in institutional care.

Earlier, the NCCWD director said the main objective of the commission was to provide education and healthcare facilities to the poor, working and street children who were unable to get it.

Hassan Mangi said Ministry of Social Welfare and Special Education had taken an initiative to introduce a child protection law for providing a protective environment to children, so that they could grow to their potential without fear of violence, abuse and exploitation.

The study was prepared by Unicef in collaboration with the social welfare ministry. It will provide a global picture of violence against children and proposes recommendations to prevent and respond to this issue.—APP