PUTRAJAYA: The appointment of a Children's Commissioner under the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) does not overlap with the work scope of the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry, says its Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri.
On the other hand, she said having the commissioner will be an advantage to the ministry, as well as government agencies involved in children's affairs and welfare such as the Home Ministry or the Education Ministry.
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"Our duties will go on as usual and there are no overlapping tasks. In fact this will be helpful in terms of checks and balances for us," she told reporters after a town hall meeting at the ministry here Wednesday (Jan 18).
Earlier, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that a Children's Commissioner has been appointed to the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) with immediate effect as part of efforts to tackle abuse and other social problems involving children.
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Meanwhile, Nancy said 18,000 social workers are needed to handle cases related to the rehabilitation, care and protection of children nationwide.
She said since 2021, a total of 1,120 Grade S29 assistant community development officers have been appointed on a contract basis.
"Studies found that the ratio of social workers to cases stands at 1:108 cases involving child protection and rehabilitation, domestic violence, daycare centres and so forth...this is not sufficient as ideally it should be 1:15 to 20 cases," she said.
Until November last year, the Ministry through the Social Welfare Department had handled a total of 5,572 cases involving physical, sexual, emotional abuse and neglect, she added. - Bernama
