KREASI Nias Utara organized a district-level Child Protection Campaign at Aula Tafaeri, The Regent Office of Nias Utara in Lotu on Friday (14/11/2025). Carrying the theme “Anak Bahagia Sekolah Berdaya, Anak Terlindungi Nias Utara Maju” (Happy Children, Empowered Schools; Protected Children, Advancing Nias Utara), this main event focused on an interactive dialogue that provided space for child representatives from 28 KREASI intervention schools to voice their views directly to the Regent, Vice Regent, and relevant policymakers.
The campaign was the culmination of a series of activities held on 11–13 November 2025, including issue mapping and workshops with children, as well as school-level campaigns in three sub-districts: Lahewa, Lotu, and Afulu.
The event was attended directly by Regent of Nias Utara, Amizaro Waruwu, and Vice Regent, Yusman Zega. The main participants of the campaign consisted of child representatives, teachers, parents, and members of the Tim Pencegahan dan Penanganan Kekerasan (TPPK/Team for the Prevention and Handling of Violence) from 28 schools.
In line with its main focus, the campaign dedicated a special session for an interactive dialogue titled “Anak Bahagia Sekolah Berdaya”. The main objective of this session was to listen directly to children’s voices about their environment and to gather concrete commitments from policymakers to realize Nias Utara as a safe and child-friendly dictrict.
Representing their peers, three children courageously came forward and translated the meaning of “child protection” into powerful drawings and stories:
Kerol, a kindergarten student, brought a drawing of a house and children she made during the school-level campaign. She shared about her activities playing safely and happily at home with her mother and younger sibling.
Meanwhile, Desti, a primary school student, firmly voiced an anti-bullying message. She presented a drawing of a palm with the words “STOP KEKERASAN dan Berteman itu Baik” (STOP VIOLENCE and Being Friends is Good). Desti emphasized, “There must be no violence, no hitting.”
Indah, also a primary school student, presented an anti-violence poster she created showing a boy and a girl, and explained her vision of ideal friendship.
“Boys and girls care for, love, and respect one another. They never bully, mock, or hit their friends,” said Indah.
Director of Article 33 Indonesia, Santoso, explained that the program aims to build a safe education ecosystem through collaboration.
“We have implemented capacity-building, training, and advocacy related to curriculum, assessment, teaching practices, school leadership, and child protection in 28 education units in Nias Utara,” said Santoso.
Vice Regent of Nias Utara, Yusman Zega, expressed his appreciation for this KREASI Nias Utara initiative.
“We are grateful for this support. We hope that this activity will help children in Nias Utara to be protected while learning so that, in the future, they can become the nation’s hope in welcoming Indonesia Emas 2045,” said Yusman Zega.
The event reached its peak with the signing of a Joint Commitment titled “Anak Bahagia Sekolah Berdaya”. This commitment contains three key agreements to ensure the sustainability of child protection efforts in Nias Utara:
- Policy Strengthening: Encouraging schools and madrasahs to implement child-friendly policies that are participatory, safe, and inclusive.
- Capacity and Synergy Strengthening: Strengthening the role of TPPK in schools and connecting it with the community-based child protection mechanism, Perlindungan Anak Terpadu Berbasis Masyarakat (PATBM), at village level.
- Child-Sensitive Budgeting: Promoting kabupaten planning and budgeting that is responsive to child protection issues, including support for strengthening TPPK.
This commitment serves as a symbol of collaboration between policymakers, schools, teachers, and students to create a learning environment that is safe and child-centered.
In his closing remarks, Regent of Nias Utara, Amizaro Waruwu, expressed his appreciation and hope that the continuity of this initiative will be maintained.
“May this activity bring benefits for the advancement of education in Nias Utara. I would like to especially remind all teachers to keep learning, improving themselves, and innovating in the teaching and learning process,” concluded the Regent.
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The Program of KREASI or Kolaborasi untuk Edukasi Anak Indonesia (Collaboration for the Education of Indonesian Children) is funded by the Global Partnership for Education, developed by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, and the Ministry of Religious Affairs. KREASI is being implemented by Save the Children with Article 33 Indonesia nd support by the Government of Nias Utara. KREASI aims to improve the quality of education in Nias Utara by strengthening teaching, learning, and student development.
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Writer: Calvin Telaumbanua | Editor: Andika Ramadhan | Photo: Calvin Telaumbanua/KREASI/Article 33 Indonesia/Save the Children