Al Kooheji Heads the First Meeting of the Executive Office of the National Committee for Childhood
19-03-2021
The Executive Office of the National Committee for Childhood has held its first meeting by videoconference, chaired by Mr. Khalid Abdul Rahman Ishaq Al‑Kooheji, Acting Undersecretary of the Ministry of Labour and Social Development and Assistant Undersecretary for Community Development. The session reviewed progress on implementing the National strategic Work Plan for Childhood, which was recently extended for a further five years. Mr. Al‑Kooheji underlined the importance of sustained follow‑up, noting that the Strategy has been circulated to every government ministry and institution with a view to advancing childhood outcomes throughout the Kingdom of Bahrain. Members also examined the Law on Restorative Justice for Children and Their Protection from Abuse. Mr. Al‑Kooheji expressed gratitude to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the great King of the country, may God protect and preserve him, for approving Law No. (4) of 2021, which places restorative justice at the core of child protection. In a detailed presentation, Ms. Zainab Salman Al‑Awinati—member of the National Commission for Childhood and Head of the Family and Child Prosecution Office at the Public Prosecution—outlined the law’s 89 articles. She explained that the statute complements Bahrain’s wider legislative framework on child rights, covering education, health, care, rehabilitation, employment of People of Determination, and measures to combat begging and vagrancy, all in line with the Kingdom’s 1991 accession to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and its two optional protocols of 2004. The Executive Office also tracked the latest updates to Bahrain’s periodic report on children’s rights, building on the Kingdom’s report that won international praise from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child during the combined fourth‑to‑sixth periodic review in January 2019. Finally, the meeting assessed the psychological, social and economic impact of the COVID‑19 pandemic on children and outlined new initiatives to bolster their protection.