Abuja: The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has called on state governments to enhance child protection systems by increasing funding, improving coordination, and deploying qualified social workers to protect vulnerable children across the nation. Mona Aika, Officer-in-Charge of Child Protection at UNICEF Nigeria, made this appeal during the National Policy Forum on Women, Children, and Families in Abuja, which was attended by stakeholders from across the country.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the forum convened commissioners of women affairs and social development, directors of child development, and other stakeholders to deliberate on strategies to strengthen child protection systems throughout Nigeria. Aika emphasized that child protection involves preventing and responding to violence, abuse, neglect, exploitation, and harmful practices, such as child marriage and female genital mutilation, which affect millions of children nationwide.
She highlighted the need for sustainable, government-led systems capable of effectively protecting children and responding promptly to rights violations. A functional child protection system, she noted, requires strong legal and policy frameworks, effective governance, quality services, workforce development, community engagement, and reliable monitoring structures across the nation.
Aika further stressed the importance of collaboration among sectors like health, education, nutrition, social protection, and justice, given the multiple vulnerabilities faced by children. UNICEF is supporting federal and state ministries responsible for social development to build sustainable child protection systems, moving away from isolated interventions.
She pointed out that sustainable child protection necessitates adequate financial and human resources, with long-term success depending on government commitment to funding and supporting essential services. Aika urged states to allocate dedicated resources for child protection programs and consider incentives for auxiliary social workers within communities to bolster frontline protection services.
Highlighting the challenges, Aika noted that approximately 19.9 million women and girls in Nigeria have survived female genital mutilation, and an estimated 23.7 million girls were married before the age of 18. She also expressed concern over low birth registration rates and the number of children detained for minor offenses alongside adults.
Stronger child protection systems are especially crucial in humanitarian settings, including conflict-affected communities in the North-East, where children face heightened risks and vulnerabilities, Aika emphasized. She stated that Nigeria’s handover protocol for children affected by armed conflict, endorsed in 2022, requires security agencies to transfer affected children to welfare authorities promptly.
Aika underscored that children associated with armed groups should be treated primarily as victims and provided with rehabilitation, reintegration, and family reunification support to aid recovery. She projected that about 4.9 million children would require humanitarian assistance in 2025, highlighting the urgent need for stronger state-led child protection systems across Nigeria.
UNICEF’s Child Protection Strategic Framework, extending until 2027, aims to ensure all children have legal identity and protection from violence, abuse, and exploitation. The framework seeks to improve access to preventive and gender-responsive services while strengthening support systems for parents, caregivers, and communities nationwide.
Jane Mutua of Save the Children International in Nigeria commended efforts by the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development to advance reforms improving child welfare. Despite progress, Mutua noted that children across Nigeria still face violence, abuse, poverty, displacement, climate-related shocks, and online risks.
She emphasized the gap between policy commitments and the realities experienced by many children and urged state governments to translate national policies into meaningful outcomes, ensuring effective protection and welfare programs for children. Mutua called for coordinated responses to emerging threats such as online exploitation, climate-induced displacement, and mental health challenges affecting children and families.
Mutua advocated for increased investment in child protection and social welfare services, emphasizing that progress should be measured by improvements in children’s lives rather than policies alone. In her closing remarks, Aika urged governments at all levels to continue advocating for child rights and prioritizing investments that ensure safe, supportive environments for children.