UNICEF Appeals to Kano Assembly to Sign Child Rights Bill

Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano

The Kano State Field Office of the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has appealed to the state House of Assembly to pass into law the Child Rights Bill.

The Child Protection Manager for UNICEF, Kano Field Office, Mrs. Emelia Allan, made the appeal during her presentation at a two-day capacity building workshop for media practitioners held in Kano, expressing happiness that out of 36 states in Nigeria, only four have not been able to sign the Child Right Act.

The UNICEF official urged the Kano state Government to, as a matter of urgency, ensure the passing as well as signing the Child Protection Act into law to further strengthen child rights and protection in the state.

She encouraged Kano, Bauchi, Adamawa and Gombe States to do the needful by signing the Child Right Act so as to ensure the welfare and protection of the child.

Allan  also decried that Kano State is registering the birth of only 54.6 percent of under-five children.

She said: “Kano State should wake up in this direction. More children need to be registered. We know the authorities are doing their best, but we need to do more.”

Allan condemned child labour, exploitation and violence meted out to children, calling on all stakeholders to stand up against such inhuman treatment against the child, including child trafficking.

She advocated for civil registration and vital statistics of the child, decrying why vital data collection such as birth registration and death registration are not being done in most parts of the African continent.

According to her, keeping such records, including marriage registration, will go a long way to ensuring accuracy in Nigeria’s population census, as well as reduce child exploitation.