Marking International Missing Children’s Day, the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs has taken a unique initiative to raise awareness about missing children, temporarily displaying a photograph of four-year-old missing child Alif in place of the official portrait of the ministry’s adviser, Sharmeen S Murshid.
The adviser’s personal secretary, Tariq Mohammad Zakaria, confirmed the initiative to Dhaka Tribune on Monday afternoon.
He said the ministry made the decision in observance of the day on May 25.
He added: “Since Alif has been missing from Tongi, Gazipur, for three days, his photograph replaced the adviser’s image on the ministry’s official website to highlight the seriousness of child disappearance. The photograph remained on the site until midday Monday, after which it was reverted.”
According to ministry sources, the initiative is not limited to a single website; plans are underway to display photos and details of missing children from specific areas across all government websites to aid in quicker dissemination and rescue.
They said a proposal will soon be floated to add a dedicated section for region-based missing child information on each official website.
According to them, ministry sources, the initiative is not limited to the ministry’s website alone.
Additionally, on Tuesday, Adviser Sharmeen S Murshid will send a formal letter to the Access to Information (a2i) program, proposing the establishment of a nationwide online National Missing Children Registry.
In a video message, Sharmeen S Murshid said: “In observance of International Missing Children’s Day and to assist in locating the child, the photo of Alif—who went missing from Gazipur on May 23—was displayed on the Women and Children Affairs Ministry’s website in place of my official portrait.”
She added: “However, this campaign should not remain confined to one website. It must extend to all government websites, social media platforms like Facebook, and amongst our communities, so that missing children can be returned to their families safely and swiftly.”
She further mentioned that many people are unaware of the “Amber Alert” system operational in various countries to help locate missing children.
“Such systems have played a vital role in countries like India, China, and Sri Lanka. We are also initiating the Amber Alert system in Bangladesh. I believe this system should be launched promptly through a joint initiative of the Women and Children Affairs Ministry,” she said.
The adviser added: “The protection of children is not only the responsibility of families, police, or a specific ministry—it is a collective responsibility.”
