Our children should be protected -Minister of Social Welfare

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Minister of Social Welfare speaking to participants during the workshop

By Yusufu S. Bangura

Minister of Social Welfare, Baindu Dassama-Kamara has on Wednesday 26th April told stakeholders that children should be protected because they are the future leaders.

She made the above statement during a two-day validation workshop on positive parenting held at Bintumani Hotel, Aberdeen in Freetown.

“The positive parenting validation workshop has been long waiting because our children need to be protected as they are our future leaders. We should all work together to ensure that they are protected because it our responsibility of taking good care of them,” she said.

She continued that positive parenting is about showing children love, warmth and kindness, encouraging and teaching them, and helping them thrive by sending powerful messages.

She admonished participants to speak about the program wherever they found themselves because the program was timely, adding that Sierra Leone has done well to protect children but the problems are still there because of poor parenting.

She said parent must create time to talk with their children by making them their friends so that they will not be afraid to let their parents know about their problems.

“I want to encourage other agencies present here to help roll out the document because it’s a very important document that can help parent build a good parenting relationship with their children. 

Child Protection Specialist at UNICEF, Emma Vincent said they would continue to support the ministry to make sure that there is good parenting, adding that she felt good seeing actors dealing with children during the workshop.

She said they were looking forward to the outcome of the deliberation from the various groups set-up during the validation workshop, because the curriculum they deliberate on are very critical.

She continued that they would launch the validation in September and that they were expecting partners to take the curriculum to their various communities by implementing them to other parents that were not part of the workshop.

She said currently they were using the Peace Building Fund to put the parenting program together for them to work with hotspot communities just to reduce violence during the election which they discuss during the validation for parent to be role models for their children. 

Chief Director of Social Service at Ministry of Social Welfare, Mariatu Bangura said with support from UNICEF they have developed three curricula for children from 0-17 years which would help parents to know how they should take good care of their children for them to be good citizens.

She added that during the two day workshop they would validate the three curricula which they have early piloted in five districts to make sure that they have a good document which they would take to various communities.

Madam Mariatu said the positive parenting workshop would create a huge impact in the lives of parent because parenting is not good in the country which affect children upbringing. 

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