Budget
By Wandoo Sombo
Abuja, June 22, 2018 (NAN) The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has called for the prioritization of child rights issues in national and state budgets.
Executive Secretary of the commission, Mr Tony Ojukwu, made the call on Friday in Abuja as Nigeria joined the rest of the Africa to celebrate the 2018 Day of the African Child.
The commemoration of the day was organized by NHRC in collaboration with PLAN International and National Council of Child Rights Advocates of Nigeria (NACCRAN).
Ojukwu said that adequate provisions should be made in national and state budgets for the protection and welfare of children, especially in emergency situations to guard against all forms of abuses.
He expressed concerns that in spite of the passage of the Child Right’s Act 2003 and its adoption in 25 states, Nigeria had continued to grapple with an inherently high incidence of child rights abuses.
The NHRC boss said that with the intersecting poverty and culture, abuse and relegation of child rights issues had become endemic and visible in the society.
According to him, there are fundamental issues affecting the child, ranging from street hawking, child marriage, female genital mutilation, child trafficking, child labour and other violent treatments meted out on children.
He called for a speedy signing of the National Child Protection and Enforcement Agency (Establishment) Bill 2018.
This, he said, was to ensure that those who violated the rights of children were punished in accordance with the law.
Ojukwu urged relevant stakeholders to drive the process of implementation of the Child Rights Act and its adoption in states that had yet to implement it.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Day of the African Child is celebrated on June 16th annually and the theme of this year’s commemoration is “Leave no Child Behind for Africa’s Development.” (NAN)
WS/OPI