The National Commission on the Rights of the Child (NCRC) held its eighth meeting of the Advisory Committee on Child Rights (ACCR) to assess progress and build momentum for continued action on child rights in Pakistan. As the current Commission nears the end of its tenure, this session served as the final ACCR convening under its term and focused on consolidating recommendations for the incoming leadership.
Chairperson NCRC Ayesha Raza Farooq opened the meeting by welcoming stakeholders and underlining the need for sustained collaboration across government and partner organisations to protect and promote child rights. She emphasised that continuity and collective effort will be essential to translate recent gains into lasting impact for children across the country.
Mr. Khalid Naeem, Member ICT, delivered a comprehensive presentation summarising NCRC initiatives and measurable progress across priority areas. His briefing highlighted advancements on preventing child marriage, reducing child labour, strengthening child online protection and advancing broader child rights interventions that aim to reach the most vulnerable children.
Participants used the meeting as a platform to reflect on achievements, identify persistent gaps and propose actionable recommendations. The inputs provided aimed to guide policy continuity and programmatic focus for the incoming Commission, ensuring that priorities such as eliminating child marriage, protecting children from labour exploitation and improving online safety remain central to the national agenda.
Representatives from the Ministry of Human Rights, UNICEF Pakistan and other federal bodies engaged in the discussion, contributing forward-looking recommendations to strengthen coordination, monitoring and community-level outreach. The ACCR meeting concluded with a shared commitment to maintain momentum on child rights and to support a smooth transition that preserves recent gains and accelerates future progress.
