Sultanate, Unicef review priorities of child welfare

ENHANCING CHILDCARE: Meeting discusses national cooperation programme on preparing children at pre-school stage and healthcare

MUSCAT: The Sultanate, represented by a number of government departments, held a meeting with the office of the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (Unicef) in Muscat.

The meeting discussed the priorities of the national cooperation programme between the Sultanate and the Unicef which includes preparing children at preschool stage, enhancing child protection programmes, enhancing childcare for children with disabilities.

Dr Yahya bin Badr al Maawali, UnderSecretary of the Ministry of Social Development, stressed on the progress indicators achieved by the Sultanate in the childhood field which came as the fruit of collaborative effort between the Unicef and various government departments in the Sultanate.

He pointed out to the qualitative and quantitative educational services provided to the children which are considered as source of pride with the school enrolment rate for children under 6 years of age at 95 per cent. With regard to healthcare, child mortality rate among newborns has fell to 9.2 from 9.5 between the years 2015 and 2016.

The Sultanate has withdrawn all its reservations about the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) apart from one reservation regarding the child’s right to freedom of religion, thus the Sultanate became committee to that convention.