An awareness-raising and validation workshop in Islamabad brought together government agencies, non-governmental organizations and international partners to address protection gaps for children crossing Pakistan’s land borders. Participants reviewed current challenges, validated proposed measures and explored practical solutions to improve child protection at border crossing points.
Organized by the Commissionerate for Afghan Refugees, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the workshop focused on “Children on the Move — Improving Child Protection at Pakistan’s Land Border Crossing Points.” It aimed to raise stakeholder awareness, validate draft guidance and align actors around common procedures for identifying and assisting vulnerable children.
Representatives from federal and provincial ministries, border authorities, humanitarian NGOs and international agencies attended. Sessions combined presentations, group discussions and validation exercises to surface operational obstacles and test proposed responses.
Discussions highlighted multiple risks facing children on the move, including family separation, lack of documentation, exposure to trafficking and exploitation, and gaps in initial screening and referral at crossing points. Participants noted inconsistent procedures, limited capacity among border staff, and weak information-sharing across agencies as key impediments to timely protection.
To address these gaps, stakeholders explored measures such as standardized child-friendly screening protocols, strengthened referral pathways to child protection and psychosocial services, capacity-building for border personnel, improved data collection and secure information-sharing, and enhanced cross-border coordination for family tracing and case management.
Attendees validated a set of recommendations and agreed on next steps to translate them into practice, including developing an action plan, establishing clearer inter-agency coordination mechanisms, and rolling out training and pilot interventions at priority border sites. The workshop concluded with a commitment from participants to continue collaborative efforts to strengthen protection for children moving across Pakistan’s land borders.
