The National Children’s Registry (NCR) received 13,918 reports in 2024 relating to 25,005 incidents of abuse and other care and protection concerns.

This reflects a decrease of 212 reports compared to the corresponding period in the previous year, as outlined in the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) Economic and Social Survey Jamaica (ESSJ) 2024.

The document explained that the total number of reports by incident type was significantly higher than the total number of reports received, as multiple forms of abuse may have been reported for each victim.

The most frequent reports involved behavioural problems (6,181 incidents: 3,252 females and 2,929 males), neglect (5,497 incidents: 2,944 females and 2,553 males) and need for care and protection (4,467 incidents: 2,614 females and 1,853 males).

“Of the reports received, 13,896 were processed (assessed and referred). The majority, 12,061 was referred to the Investigation Services Unit (ISU) after being processed,” the Survey indicated.

The remaining reports were referred to partner agencies, including the Office of the Children’s Advocate (OCA), the Centre for the Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (CISOCA), the Criminal Investigations Branch (CIB), and the Counter- Terrorism and Organised Crime Investigation Branch (C-TOC).

Data from the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) indicate that the largest proportions of abuse reports referred for investigation occurred in the parishes of Kingston, St Catherine and St Ann, which accounted for 20 per cent, 16 per cent and 11 per cent, respectively.

Meanwhile, the ISU completed investigations of 12,769 cases, including those brought forward from previous periods. This reflects a decrease of 295 cases compared to the prior year.

Additionally, 12,000 updates were submitted to the NCR outlining the outcomes of completed investigations.

As at December 31, 2024, the ISU had a caseload of 1,917, reflecting a decrease of 602 matters (23.9 per cent) compared to the previous period.