The government is in the final stages of preparing a report on the status of children's rights in Malaysia which would be submitted to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) next year.

Deputy Women, Family and Community Development Minister Hannah Yeoh said the "Second to Fifth CRC Country Report" would be handed over to the Attorney-General's Chambers for review before being presented to the Cabinet for approval.

"We have not submitted this report since the first in 2006. Deputy Prime Minister Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has given instructions for us to prepare this report and submit it next year," she told reporters in Kuala Lumpur today.

Yeoh said the report to the CRC, which had to be submitted every five years, involved input from various parties including the Home Ministry and Education Ministry.

"With this report, I hope that everyone can understand more about issues related to children," she said.

Earlier, Yeoh received the status report on child rights in Malaysia 2018 from the Child Rights Coalition Malaysia (CRCM), which will also serve as the main reference in finalising the report to the CRC.

In another development, she said the ministry would focus on increasing the number of child protection officers in the country next year to address various issues related to the group.

“This is because there are currently about 200 child protection officers, but for the nine million child population, we actually need 1,500 officers. Therefore, it is important that it be increased,” she said.

The officers play an important role in helping the children get protection under the Child Act 2001, she added. — Bernama