Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Directorate of Public Relations gets its first Public Outreach Strategy and Media Cell in Peshawar

September 4, 2023

Peshawar, September 4 2023 — Under the European Union (EU) funded ‘Deliver Justice Project’ the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Pakistan, launched the first-ever Communications and Public Outreach Strategy and inaugurated the first-ever media cell of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Directorate of Public Relations at the Central Police Office (CPO) in Peshawar.

The Communications and Public Outreach Strategy lays out a strategic path for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Directorate of Public Relations, enabling them to play a more well-defined and proactive role in strengthening police-community relations and forging partnerships. The ultimate goal is to enhance public safety and security across the province.

Furthermore, the newly established media cell is equipped with cutting-edge, state-of-the-art facilities. These facilities are geared towards facilitating the effective implementation of the Communications and Public Outreach Strategy. The overarching aim is to foster increased transparency and bolster public trust in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police.

In the presence of the chief guests, Mr. Akhtar Hayat Khan, Inspector General of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police, and Ms. Chamila Hemmathagama, Programme Manager, Rule of Law Programme, UNDP Pakistan, the Communications and Public Outreach Strategy was signed off by the designated officials of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police and UNDP Pakistan as part of the launch-cum-inauguration ceremony.

Developed by the UNDP Rule of Law Programme in collaboration with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police and with support from the EU, the Communications and Public Outreach Strategy focuses on optimizing the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Directorate of Public Relations’ use of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs), community engagement, crisis communication, and use of analytics to monitor and improve the performance of the Directorate.

The media cell, established by the UNDP Rule of Law Programme with the EU’s support, will be responsible for:

Implementation of the Communications and Public Outreach Strategy developed to strengthen the Directorate of Public Relations role in fostering public and police partnerships.
Real-time media monitoring to strengthen people–centered policing.
Correspondence with the media regarding the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police activities.
Public dissemination of information.
Use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) especially social media to enhance community engagement.

The establishment of a media cell for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Directorate of Public Relations will enable them to promptly address public comments, inquiries, and information requests. These will be efficiently directed to the relevant regional and district police officers for immediate action. This enhanced responsiveness, coupled with a more proactive Communications and Public Outreach Strategy, will bolster transparency, citizen trust, and engagement. The proactive sharing of information through social and electronic media will further empower the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police in their commitment to improving access to justice and implementing people-centred policing.

Mr. Akhtar Hayat Khan, Inspector General of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police, took this opportunity to thank the EU and UNDP Pakistan for their support. He stated, “We are hopeful that the Communications and Public Outreach Strategy and the media cell will enable the Directorate of Public Relations to create visibility of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police initiatives that aim to make the communities safer. More importantly, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Directorate of Public Relations remains committed to enhancing public trust by addressing real-time public concerns and inquiries through the newly inaugurated media cell.”

Ms. Chamila Hemmathagama, Programme Manager, Rule of Law Programme, UNDP Pakistan, underlined, “Now more than ever, integrating Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) in the service delivery of law enforcement has become essential to enhance equal access to justice and uphold the rule of law to foster and maintain safer communities, especially for women, transgender and other marginalized communities. Through the initiative we are inaugurating today, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Directorate of Public Relations will be well placed to drive transformative changes in the policing service in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to promote people–centered services and to better serve and protect the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa." She also thanked the EU and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police for their longstanding strategic partnership in strengthening the rule of law in Pakistan.

The “Deliver Justice Programme”, funded by the EU aims to support reform processes to ensure the delivery of people-centred justice, enhance access to justice for all, particularly women and less privileged groups, and improve service delivery of the security sector in line with constitutional safeguards and international standards in the Merged Districts and Balochistan. The programme is funded by the EU and jointly implemented by UNDP, UN Women, and UNODC.

The UNDP Rule of Law Programme is implementing a range of interventions to enhance security and justice sector governance in Pakistan.

For additional information, please contact Shuja Hakim at shuja.hakim@undp.org or +92 (51) 835 5657

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