Against the backdrop of the October 2005 earthquake and the loss of 17,000 innocent lives of school children due to the destruction of school buildings.
The Aga Khan Planning and Building Service, Pakistan and Focus Humanitarian Assistance, Pakistan, agencies of Aga Khan Development Network, launched a two-day "International Conference on School Safety", at the Islamabad Serena Hotel.
The conference held as part of Golden Jubilee celebrations commemorating fifty years of Imamat of Prince Karim Aga Khan in which a number of initiatives, programmes and developmental projects were being organised both nationally and internationally.
The School Safety Conference focussed on reducing the risks to school structures following natural disasters and primarily enhancing the safety of schoolchildren. It was attended by prominent national and international experts on the subject as well as by people from the international development sector.
The conference would promote the urgent need for earthquake-resistant schools and provide high-level recommendations at policy and practical levels to increase awareness about the importance and availability of tools and techniques for school safety in a larger context. The two-day conference also provided seminar participants with an opportunity to visit earthquake affected areas in Kashmir and the North West Frontier Province.
In his introductory remarks, Iqbal Walji, President of His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan National Council for Pakistan, said that the School Safety Conference and seminars would provide an opportunity for collaboration between important stakeholders to develop a proactive approach in designing integral policies for safer, seismic-proof schools.
The Chief Guest, Ms Sherry Rehman, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, requested the Aga Khan Development Network commit its physical and human resources to ensuring the safer constructions and building of policies of not only schools but also hospitals in Pakistan.
The Minister reiterated the importance of government and civil society partnerships in following specific protocols related to school safety and looked forward to delegates submitting a set of concrete recommendations at the end of the conference. The School Safety Conference continues into its final day on Friday.-PR
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