The Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) has revealed that the Department of Probation and Child Care Services has not taken action in respect of 485 complaints it received and as for the investigations they conducted the officials had not followed up to see if their recommendations had been carried out.

The COPA also observed that there was no regulation on cyber crimes against children, who are receiving online education. It said steps should be taken immediately to ensure the safety of children.

COPA also found out that although the mission of the Department of Probation and Child Care Services was to formulate a national policy to protect the rights of children and an implementation mechanism, it had not been done even by 2021.

The Committee, chaired by MP Prof. Tissa Vitarana, said that the Department had also been entrusted with the enactment of laws and the formulating, policies, in line with international standards to safeguard the rights, development and protection of orphaned, abandoned and vulnerable children.

The Committee also told officials of the Department that they needed to formulate a systematic legal framework regarding media reportage concerning child affairs. They were also asked by officials to formulate a formal programme to provide counseling services to children.

The discussion took place when the Auditor General’s reports on the Department of Probation and Child Care Services for the years 2016, 2017 and 2018 and the current performance report were submitted to the Committee.

COPA Chairman Prof. Vitarana emphasised that the national policies and plans to protect children should be formulated immediately.

It was also revealed that the Department of Probation and Child Care Services had spent Rs. 4.98 million in 2016 on three research projects to inquire into the failure of socialising the children in orphanages, the impact upon the children whose parents are abroad and their safety and on a review of child participation in labour. However, the recommendations and conclusions drawn from those research reports were never implemented.

COPA said it was important to establish a research unit in the Department of Probation and Child Care Services to look into issues faced by children. It was also important to strengthen rural child protection committees, the COPA said.

The COPA suggested that the number of children’s clubs be increased.