Too Many Agencies, Too Little Coordination? Here’s the New Plan for Protecting Children 

Belize officially launched the Child Protection and Child Justice Steering Committee (CPJSC) on Friday by merging two previously separate bodies into one national committee. CPJSC is tasked with overseeing national reforms rather than individual cases and will work under a five-year action plan from 2026 to 2031.

The committee combines the former Child Protection Thematic Working Group and Child Justice Steering Committee. The fusion brings together government ministries, the justice sector, law enforcement, civil society and development partners. Its creation follows a comprehensive evaluation of Belize’s child protection system that found weak coordination and misalignment among the institutions responsible for preventing and responding to violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation.

Attorney General Anthony Sylvestre said years of operating under separate child protection and child justice committees showed the need for a more coordinated approach. “Experience has shown over time that it’s best to have a collaborative effort,” He said. “You have stakeholders from various agencies, whether it be law enforcement, whether it be the court, whether it be in social service, all coming together to address the issue of child protection and child justice.”

Sylvestre said the Attorney General’s ministry sits on the committee, which will help fast-track legislation affecting families and children. “In a more timely manner we’ll be able to have legislation which touch and concerns families and children, that those are able to be addressed,” he said.

Justice Natalie Dixon chairs the committee, with the Director of the Department of Human Services serving as Vice-Chair and the National Commission for Families and Children acting as Secretariat. Justice Dixon said the body will not manage individual cases but will oversee and monitor reforms nationally.

The committee’s five strategic priorities are strengthening the national child protection system, modernising the child justice system, expanding prevention and early intervention, improving data and accountability, and strengthening the workforce serving children and families.

UNICEF Belize Representative Sajid Ali said children are too often left out of major policy discussions. He argued that their voices must be placed at the centre of decisions that affect them. “Strong coordination and accountability are essential to building a child protection system that can effectively respond to the needs of children and families,” he said.

The committee’s five-year work plan is aligned with Belize’s Children’s Agenda and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.