Religious leaders in Cox's Bazar have pledged to help end child marriage, child labour and school dropouts also calling on imams, temple priests and Buddhist monks to take a leading role in raising public awareness.
The meeting, held Sunday at the Cox's Bazar District Islamic Foundation was organized by World Vision Bangladesh's Child Safety Net Project in cooperation with local religious leaders.
Chief guest Md. Sarwar Akbar, Deputy Director of Islamic Foundation Cox's Bazar said protecting children's future is a moral responsibility for all of society, not just the state. He urged religious leaders to address these issues through Friday sermons the religious gatherings and family counselling also adding that early marriage and denying children education contradict both religious and humanitarian values.
Md. Kamal Uddin the President of Bangladesh National Imam Association Cox's Bazar, said administrative campaigns alone cannot end child marriage a genuine shift in mindset is needed and imams are best placed to drive that change. He also called for coordinated efforts to tackle the poverty behind child labour.
World Vision officials, including Sagar D'Costa, Ronald Prabir Chisik and Mohammad Jamal Uddin, stressed that child protection requires collective action from families, schools, religious leaders, local administration and civil society not policy alone. They said social acceptance and grassroots resistance are essential to enforcing existing laws.
Speakers agreed that keeping children in school and safeguarding their rights must transcend religious divisions also warning that school dropouts push an entire generation toward a darker future.
More than fifty religious leaders from different faiths attended alongside representatives from World Vision Bangladesh and local organizations, reflecting a shared commitment to building a child-friendly Cox's Bazar.
