The mood was grim but hopeful at the official launch of the Missing Children's Support Programme at Swallowfield Primary and Junior High School yesterday.

Those present were given the faith that, at last, greater steps would be taken in combating the growing problem of child abuse in Jamaica.

The programme, sponsored by Jamaica Yellow Pages, has been set up by Hear The Children's Cry in an attempt to combat child abduction and mistreatment.

The programme will work in conjunction with the police, the Government and the media and will monitor progress in cases of missing children. It will also provide support for the families in the form of counselling, assisting with legal issues and publicising abductions.

The site of the launch was no accident. Swallowfield was the school attended by 11-year-old Ananda Dean, who was kidnapped and murdered in 2008.

There were tears from her family as students from the school acted out a poignant dance routine in front of a large photo of Ananda.

"The only way to fight this scourge is to band together," said Betty Ann Blaine, convenor of Hear the Children's Cry.

"Our children are a reflection of who we are," she said. "Let us fight for [missing children] as we would fight for our own child."

Blaine described the statistics of child abduction in Jamaica as "staggering".

In 2008 alone, 1,446 people went missing, 960 of whom were children. Of these, seven were found murdered and 181 have not been found.