LAHORE - Plan International Pakistan formally launched Lessons for Protection – a regional study based on the comparative analysis of Community Based Child Protection Mechanisms (CBCPMs) at an event in Lahore co-hosted with the Child Rights Movement. Pakistan is among the countries that participated in the study. On the occasion, Punjab Education Minister Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan was the chief guest.
According to the study, CBCPMs resulted in increased understanding at family/ community levels about child protection; practices which may have been considered normal, such as corporal punishment, child marriages, child labour, and child abuse are increasingly identified as protection concerns.
Findings and recommendations of the report were presented by Samina Sardar, Regional CBCPM Specialist, who addressing the audience remarked: “Children are not only our future, they are here today and they have immediate needs. We must invest in their protection now. This investment will reap dividends many times the cost”.
Among other key actions the study also recommends research and analysis to build upon traditional practices which support children’s protection and participation and to transform harmful traditional practices; and supporting the Government’s efforts to strengthen child protection data collection (disaggregated by gender, ethnicity, age and other factors).  The launch provided a platform for key stakeholders to discuss ways to strengthen the child protection system in Punjab.