Buhari Reiterates Nigeria’s Commitment To Protection Of Children’s Rights
• Oyebanji Pledges Better Opportunities For Ekiti Kids • PDP Scribe, Imo Speaker Felicitate Children
OUTGOING President Muhammadu Buhari has reiterated Nigeria’s commitment to the protection and promotion of the rights of the children.
This was as the Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, yesterday pledged to create opportunities for children in the state.
Speaking at the 2023 Children’s Day Parade held at the Old Parade Ground, Abuja, yesterday, the President stressed the need to address the challenges and impact of poor parenting on the mental, physical and psychological well- being of the Nigerian child.
Represented by the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Dame Pauline Talen, the President lamented that Nigeria was bedevilled by value crises, stressing that there was an urgent need for the reorientation of children and youths.
Buhari stressed the need to ensure that children are brought up properly with strict enduring values for a better Nigeria.
He said: “Good parenting promotes and facilitates the physical, emotional, social, spiritual and intellectual development of the child from infancy to adulthood. Parents must be conscious of their responsibilities to their children; good parenting is crucial to the security of the nation. Good character begins from home. Parents must provide for the care, maintenance and education of their children in line with the provisions of the Child Rights Act 2030 to enable them to become responsible citizens and future leaders.”
The President urged children to show respect for their parents, teachers and superiors at all times, adding that the government remains fully committed to providing an enabling environment for children to grow and attain their full potential.
He noted that 35 states have domesticated the Child Rights Act, disclosing that only Bauchi State was yet to domesticate it.
He added that all efforts should be made to remove Nigerian children from the streets and ensure that they are enrolled in schools.
Earlier, Speaker of the National Children Parliament, Progress Umoh, who quoted the Universal Basic Education Commission ( UBEC), said 10 million children at the primary level and additional eight million in the junior secondary level who are out of school in Nigeria account for 50 per cent of the total number of out of school children globally.
He called on the incoming government to ensure that both the federal and state governments prioritise effective implementation of the Child Rights Act, provision of adequate funding for quality education for Nigerian children, provision of scholarship programmes to assist vulnerable children and effective implementation of safe school declaration for adequate security to curb the high rate of kidnapping of children, among others.