DIRECTOR of the Child Care and Protection Agency (CCPA), Ms. Ann Greene has said that, with gang violence among youths quickly becoming a problem at never before proportions experienced in schools, there is an opportunity to nip it in the bud. Fresh from of a leadership retreat in the United States (U.S.), aimed, particularly, at tackling the scourge, she said, in order to stem will require “combined efforts which must involve the community, local groups and the families.”
Greene said working with families is crucial in the fight “or else we will just be doing what the adage says of taking the dog out of the kennel, bathing him to get rid of fleas but returning him to the kennel, where no cleaning was done.”
She is adamant that arresting “this destruction of youth necessitates, providing greater “assistance for the families.”
Greene, whose agency falls under the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, said more proactive initiative should be taken in schools.
In an interview with the Guyana Chronicle last weekend, she said “there should be more encouragement in schools to use positive reinforcement, which is known to work better than punishment.”
Greene said, too, that there is a dire need for more after school activities for empowerment and to channel energies into productive areas.

Express themselves
She suggested the establishment of student groups allowing children to express themselves and letting them go through the change they want; getting them involved in doing special projects to clean up their environment and help the less fortunate that would also assist in promoting a better attitude to gratitude.
Greene said she will be stepping up efforts to engage key agencies and players dealing with children, especially the Ministry of Education and working assiduously to establish the coordinating body of child protection services providers that was in the making for some time.  
She committed, as well, to broaden community outreaches in a quest to secure more engagement in child protection.  
“There are a number of local groups and organisations that could be involved in the work of the agency making a meaningful and tangible contribution to protect Guyana’s children but it calls for putting aside differences and working with people you might not even like,” Greene posited.
She said her aim is to create partnerships between non-governmental organizations (NGOs), community groups, public and private schools and governmental agencies in addressing issues of child protection.