Child Helplines international conference from May 23

The Protection and Social Rehabilitation Centre, Aman, a part of the Qatar Foundation for Social Work (QFSW), is organising an international conference for child support lines on May 23 and 24 at the Grand Hyatt Doha with the participation of more than 30 global and regional organisationsLocal Arabic daily Arrayah reported that the event coincides with an extension of the celebration of the International Day of Child Helplines, which is observed by the International Organisation of Child Helplines on May 17. The conference aims to mobilise international and regional efforts for child helplines. Qatar, through QFSW, represented by Aman, seeks to co-ordinate policies and exchange experiences between the agencies that provide child helplines service in order to achieve growth and sustainable development to improve access to technology and knowledge for exchanging ideas, promoting innovation and building more peaceful and prosperous societies, especially for children.Aman executive director and conference organising committee chairman Abdul Aziz al-Ishaq, said the event will discuss a number of themes, the approach of Aman in child protection, the experience of the hotline, the challenges faced by child helplines at international and regional levels, emergency response mechanisms to help children in political crises, the role of child helplines in achieving the Millennium Goals, and a review of the most important international and regional practices and experiences, laws, regulations, policies and other relevant topics."The conference will be accompanied by a closed meeting for the preparatory consultative meeting for the Stockholm meeting of the members of the Mena Regional Office of the International Organisation for Child Helplines, in addition to a set of parallel workshops on methods of dealing with abuse in the school environment, mechanisms for reporting it and methods of creating media campaigns directed at children. For the first time, children will participate in the discussion of their own issues by presenting their working papers, and managing the sessions.”The official added that the conference will contribute to the development of work in the field of child support and sharing of the valuable Qatari experience to the world.