JEDDAH: A National Family Safety Program (NFSP) study has found that 56.5 percent of female students at schools are involved in some sort of bullying and violence, compared to 39.5 percent of male students at schools.

The study concluded that it was important for the Ministry of Education and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to organize training on how to deal with bullying, which would include officials and teachers at schools.

Maha Al-Muneef, the executive director of the NFSP, said there has been a 30 percent increase in cases of violence reported on its national child support line in 2014 compared to the previous year.

“It is very clear from the figures and statistics that there is an increase in the number of phone calls coming from Makkah and Riyadh in comparison to the other regions of the Kingdom.” This was likely due to an increased awareness on the issue, which would see figures rise in future, she said.

She said officials answering calls provide counseling, and also refer cases to the police for further action. The aim is to provide an intervention that would ensure a child is brought into a safe environment, she said.

She said that the NFSP initially faced difficulties when it was first established, but has now made significant headway in raising awareness of domestic violence in the community.

Al-Muneef said community awareness and legislation is needed to confront the problem. She said two recently passed laws have made a huge difference, and outline penalties for perpetrators including jail terms of between one month and a year, and fines of between SR5,000 and SR50,000, which are doubled for repeat offenders.

Al-Muneef was speaking at the 10th anniversary of the NFSP, which is affiliated to the health affairs department of the National Guard Ministry. She said that those involved in the fight against domestic violence include nine ministries and government agencies.

These include the interior, justice, social affairs, culture and information, and foreign affairs ministries, the General Presidency for the Welfare of Youth, and the Human Rights Commission.