PESHAWAR: In a significant step towards enhancing child protection and welfare in the merged districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a two-day capacity-building training was arranged for the Social Service Workforce (SSWF).
The training sessions concluded in the seven merged districts (Kurram, Khyber, Bajaur, Mohmand, North Waziristan, South Waziristan and Orakzai).
The district level social service workforce participated in a structured two-day training held at each district. In the context of Child Protection, Social Service Workforce forms a critical subset of the broader social service workforce, sharing the same goal to care, support, promote rights and empower vulnerable people and with a focus on preventing and responding to violence, abuse, neglect, and exploitation against children through preventative, responsive and promotive programmes.
The primary objectives of these two-day district-level trainings were to establish a comprehensive understanding of existing child protection service frameworks and foster collaboration with other social service sectors.
This approach aims to enhance the effectiveness of the child protection system and ensure the coordinated delivery of promotive, preventive, and protective services for children.
By strengthening interdepartmental coordination and partnerships with civil society, the initiative also seeks to better protection children at risk of harm.
This year, 247 members of the social workforce across the Merged Districts benefited from this training initiative. Participants in the training were selected from various key departments, including the police, judiciary, district administration, prosecution, social welfare, education, health, civil society organizations, Rescue 1122, and other relevant stakeholders.
Organized by the District Child Protection Units within the Social Welfare Department of the Merged Districts, this marks the first large scale child protection collaborative training of its kind in the MDs.
Child Protection Officers from the Social Welfare Department led these sessions and developed the training resources.
This was made possible with the generous support of UNICEF, which is also supporting the Social Welfare Department in the Merged Districts both technically and financially, to build the capacity of Child Protection Units, including training staff on case management and referral systems, implementing a Child Protection Management Information System, supporting in establishing community-based Child Protection Committees at the village and neighborhood level, and District Child Protection Committees led by Deputy Commissioners to strengthen collaboration within the SSWF.
Director Social Welfare Merged Districts Muhammad Naeem, emphasized the importance of this initiative noting, “this training strengthens the very core of our child protection framework in the Merged Districts.
By working closely with the SSWF, we are not only responding to immediate needs but also building a sustainable support system that will protect children and their caregivers across the board.
Our partnership with UNICEF enables us to bring real and lasting change in the lives of children.”
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