National Policy Dialogue On Ending Violence Against Children In Nigeria

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REMARKS BY HIS EXCELLENCY, PROF. YEMI OSINBAJO, SAN, GCON, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA AT THE NATIONAL DIALOGUE ON ENDING VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN IN NIGERIA ON THE 17TH OF JUNE, 2021

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FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA’S STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT TO ENDING VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN

The Federal Government of Nigeria is firmly committed to ending all forms of violence against children. To this end, we enacted the Child Rights Act in 2003 and we subsequently developed a National Strategic Plan to End Child Marriage in Nigeria (2016 – 2021), and adopted a National Priority Agenda for Vulnerable Children 2013 – 2020.

In 2015, we enunciated the Declaration of a Year of Action to End Violence Against Children, and established a Technical Working Group on Ending-Violence Against Children.

In February 2017, Nigeria became a pathfinder country within the global partnership to end violence against children, when it made a formal commitment and since then, Nigeria has worked diligently to protect all children.

We welcome the 2020 Global Status Report on Preventing Violence Against Children. It is important to highlight that Nigeria ranked above average in promoting norms and values and response and support service to survivors’ strategies and ranked high in the education and life skill strategy category. However, we acknowledge the need to improve on the implementation and enforcement of laws, promotion of safe environments, and strengthening parental and caregiver support approaches.

RESTATEMENT OF COMMITMENT TO ENDING VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN IN NIGERIA

Recalling our commitment to protect children from abuse, exploitation, trafficking, and violence under Goal 16.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals, we remain fully committed to collective action at all levels, to end all forms of violence against children. We therefore use the opportunity presented by the National Policy Dialogue to restate our continued commitments:

1. The Federal Government will continue to support and encourage States yet to adopt the Child Rights Act of 2003 as law, to do so. States that have the Child Rights Law will continue to be supported to ensure that the laws are enforced, and perpetrators held accountable.
2. The Government through the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning will continue to apply its best efforts to provide adequate funding in a bid to strengthen child protection and social protection systems.
3. The Government will deepen its efforts towards achieving universal birth registration in order to improve the lives of our country’s most vulnerable children who remain without legal identity. We will continue to work with relevant agencies to develop and implement a digital universal birth registration system.
4. The Government remains committed to implementing the recommendations of its recent convening on financing Safe Schools in Nigeria and ensuring that no child shall be subjected to physical, mental or emotional injury, abuse, neglect or maltreatment, or subjected to torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
5. Recognising the need to keep children safe in the digital classrooms and the need to ensure that every child is free from sexual exploitation and abuse, the government remains committed to enacting appropriate laws and policies relating to cybersecurity, safety and data protection with a view to putting in place a robust Child Online Protection System with the collaboration of  regulatory agencies, law enforcement agencies, development partners, telecommunication companies and internet service providers. The Child Online Protection System will complement the already established Child Protection Information Management System that is coordinated by the National Human Rights Commission.
6. We will continue to invest in support services that protect children affected by violence. Not only will children be able to report incidents of violence, but when they report, the services will be available to them. As such, we will encourage more states to establish Sexual Assault Referral Centres to ensure that survivors receive an integrated care pathway. There are currently thirty- one Sexual Assault Referral Centres in seventeen States and the Federal Capital Territory, that provide free medical, counselling and support services to survivors of sexual violence
7. We will scale up household economic strengthening policies and programmes that improve the well-being and protection of our children and their caregivers.

The Federal Government acknowledges the support of our development partners towards ending all forms of violence against children and we further seek your technical and financial support towards the realization of this unified objective.

Thank you.