Interior Ministry and Facebook work together to design alert system for missing children
An alert system to help find missing children in the UAE using the Facebook application was launched this week.
The Neda system – which is Arabic for alert – is the first of its kind in the Middle East and was developed by the Ministry of Interior in co-operation with Facebook to assist in the search for missing children.
The app also aims to promote social responsibility among the people of the UAE and strengthen the ministry’s efforts to maintain security and safety in the Emirates.
An alert will be issued after police report a missing child to the ministry’s children’s centre.
The alert will be sent out to all Facebook users in the area where the child was reported missing.
The message, which will come in the form of a Facebook notification for users, will include a photo of the missing child and any descriptions or details, such as last known location, that may help with identification.
If the child is not found within a certain time, the message is sent to all the Facebook users across the country.
Lt Gen Saif Al Shafar, the undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior, said that the Neda system was an example of benefits of technology and social media in efforts to further safety in the UAE. “The launch of the first stage of Neda is part of the ministry’s strategic initiatives that aim to promote child protection and use modern technology,” Lt Gen Al Shafar said.
“We will work on managing calls from police general commands in the country, and after taking the required measures, we will circulate their reports in the form of a call through Facebook in the areas where children have gone missing.”
He said that the UAE had a leading international reputation in dealing with child protection, which is one of the main priorities of its social policy.
“The ministry aims to further this approach, according to its working competencies, as well as to employ international expertise to promote child protection in the country,” Lt Gen Al Shafar said.
The UAE’s Child Protection Law was implemented in 2016 and includes at least 10 years’ imprisonment for anyone convicted of exploiting a child, and fines of up to Dh1 million for circulating child pornography online.