By Emma Black

The Ministry of Gender and Children’s Affairs (MGCA) has renewed efforts to strengthen child protection systems following a high-level strategic meeting with the Family Support Unit (FSU) at the Criminal Investigation Department headquarters in Freetown.

The engagement focused on improving coordination, referral pathways, and data sharing in response to rising concerns over child abuse, neglect, and gender-based violence cases nationwide.

Leading the Ministry’s delegation, Acting Director of Children’s Affairs, Mr. Daniel Gbao, emphasized the urgent need to reinforce frontline services. He proposed expanding the deployment of trained social workers to five key FSU stations in the Western Area to ensure timely case management, survivor support, and effective representation for vulnerable children.

“Effective intervention begins with strong coordination,” Mr. Gbao noted, stressing that fragmented response systems can delay justice and psychosocial support for survivors.

A key outcome of the meeting was the call to review the 2011 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Ministry and the FSU. Officials agreed that the existing framework must be updated to reflect emerging child protection challenges, evolving legal standards, and increasing caseloads.

Mrs. Aminata J. Kargbo Esq. further underscored the importance of strengthening collaboration around the national diversion policy, a mechanism designed to redirect minor cases away from formal prosecution toward rehabilitation and social support. She called for regular case updates and improved transparency to enhance accountability.

She also highlighted the need for accurate and comprehensive national data on FSU-related cases, noting that reliable statistics are critical for evidence-based policymaking, budgeting, and resource allocation.

Responding on behalf of the Unit, the Head of the FSU welcomed the Ministry’s engagement and reaffirmed the Unit’s commitment to closer collaboration. He pledged that the FSU would provide quarterly case data to support national reporting and coordination efforts.

The meeting concluded with several resolutions, including strengthened joint monitoring mechanisms, integration of new action points into the revised MoU, wider distribution of the diversion policy across FSU stations, and improved tracking of diversion cases.

Both institutions reiterated their shared commitment to reinforcing Sierra Leone’s child protection system through deeper inter-agency cooperation, stronger accountability measures, and improved service delivery for children and survivors of abuse.

Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Monday, 23rd February 2026 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)