PESHAWAR: UNICEF Representative in Pakistan Pernille Ironside visited Badeezai village in Peshawar to review efforts aimed at making communities safer and more supportive for children under the Child-Friendly Communities (CFC) initiative.
During the visit, the UNICEF delegation was briefed on measures being taken to strengthen child protection at the community level and improve links between families, schools, health and education services and formal child protection institutions.
The delegation included UNICEF Chief of Field Office Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Radoslaw Rzehak and UNICEF CFC Ambassador Naila Kiani. Chief of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Commission Ijaz Muhammad Khan briefed the delegation on the commission’s work in the area.
According to officials, the commission, in collaboration with UNICEF and other partners, is working to promote child-friendly and corporal-punishment-free schools in Badeezai and Regi Lalma. The initiative also involves Community-Based Child Protection Committees, which help identify cases involving child abuse, violence and neglect and connect affected children with relevant protection services.
During the visit, Ironside met children, adolescents, mothers and other community members and listened to their experiences and concerns about child protection. She appreciated the community’s involvement and stressed that children, parents and local residents should have a meaningful role in building effective protection systems.
Officials said the integrated approach could help bring lasting improvements in child protection and support the development of safer and more inclusive communities for children across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
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