PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The Women, Family and Community Development Ministry has recommended a review of the school syllabus to incorporate sex education in the subjects of Moral Education and Islamic Studies.

The ministry said the recommendation was raised during the Malaysian Council for Child Welfare meeting at UTC Kuching in Sarawak recently.

The meeting was a platform for council members to discuss and find solutions to issues concerning children in the country, including students who were lagging behind academically or expelled, as well as incest.

"Concerns over the safety of children, especially that of sexual abuse victims, were also highlighted," the ministry said in a statement on Saturday (Oct 21).

Following discussions, the council decided that a method should be introduced to help children get information about reproductive health through the correct channel.

"All this while, our children have been too exposed to unverified information on the Internet and social media," the statement quoted Minister Datuk Seri Rohani Abdul Karim as saying.

The council also discussed the citizenship of children placed under the care of the Social Welfare Department - a matter that also involves the National Registration Department under the Home Ministry.

After the meeting, a dialogue programme was held at Yayasan Sarawak to discuss current issues concerning crime against children.

Among the panel speakers were Supt Siti Kamsiah Hasan, Dr Farah Nini Ahmad Dasuki and crime analyst Kamal Afendi Hasim. Some 200 parents, teachers, lawyers and children attended the programme.