Baghdad: The Ministry of Planning is exploring mechanisms for developing a national strategy to protect against ideas and behaviors alien to Iraqi society. The Ministry of Planning held its second meeting on Monday of the committee tasked with preparing the National Strategy for Community Immunization against Ideas and Behaviors Alien to Iraqi Society. The meeting was chaired by Maha Abdul Karim Al-Rawi, Director General of the Department of Human Development, and attended by committee members and representatives from several governmental, academic, and media institutions.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, Al-Rawi explained that the formation of this committee was a result of the rapid social, cultural, economic, and digital transformations that society has witnessed, some of which present challenges and risks that could affect social cohesion, particularly among children, youth, and vulnerable groups. She highlighted challenges such as violent extremism, hate speech, digital disinformation, drug abuse, violence, bullying, family disintegration, and weak national identity, along with behaviors threatening civil peace and societal values.

The Director General emphasized that the strategy aims to find solutions and address these behaviors through an integrated national system. This system will involve state institutions, families, schools, universities, the media, religious institutions, civil society organizations, and the private sector, contributing to societal resilience and the enhancement of national and human values. The meeting included discussions on the strategy’s framework, main axes, measurable indicators, and objectives to ensure the integration of roles among relevant parties.

Attendees included the Dean of Imam Al-Kadhim College, Abdul Jalil Munshid, the Director General of the Judicial Protection Department at the Supreme Judicial Council, Abdul Hadi Ali, and representatives from the Iraqi Media Network, the Media and Communications Commission, the Ministries of Interior, Education, and Higher Education and Scientific Research, among others, including those from the Sunni and Shiite endowments.