The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Children

  • ECAN seeks day on ‘Violence Against Children’

    Early Childhood Association of Nigeria (ECAN) has expressed concern on the rising wave of violence against children in the country.

    More worrisome, the body said, are many underreported cases of violence against minors because they and their parents and guardians “have limited knowledge of appropriate quarters where such cases can be reported”.

    While praising the government for incorporating Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) into policy documents and domesticating the Child’s Rights Act (2003), ECAN said it was not happy that authorities had not earmarked a day to campaign on violence against children and advocate for the protection of child’s rights.

    The above and several others formed part of the communiqué  ECAN came up with after its five-day national conference in Agbor, Delta State, last week.

    “The prevalence of violence against Nigerian children is on the increase and becoming unbearable. Thus, urgent and drastic measures should be taken to reduce or stop violence against children,” the communiqué stated.

    It added: “As a matter of urgency, government should create more centres, especially at local levels where cases of violence can be reported and counseling services provided for victims. Government should put in place practical measures leading to timely prosecution of culprits/perpetrators of such crime.”

    The body also called on government to sensitise the public on the content, interpretation and protection of child’s rights in Nigeria. It further challenged every custodian of children to see it as a duty to participate in protecting their wards physically, financially, psychologically and otherwise.

    The body added that intervention training exercise with the purpose of “empowering children with negotiation skills and knowledge was needed to protect them from violent circumstances”.

    The conference, which kicked off on Monday last week with the theme: ‘Violence against Children’, featured over 80 presentations that revolved around the theme.

    One of the lead paper presenters, Dr Sopekan Serah, from Department of Arts and Social Science Education, University of Lagos, spoke extensively on various cases of violence on Nigerian children in schools, homes and work places.

    Serah condemned the increase in rape cases and other forms of child abuse, charging government and stakeholders to rise against the menace.

    She further sought vigilance on the part of caregivers in immediate environment, adding that most parents and teachers lacked adequate awareness of violence and its distinct forms.

    Aside the conference, there was also a workshop organised for teachers across private and public schools in Delta State. The session, which was coordinated by Mr. Simeon Sunday Fowowe from Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education, Ijanikin, Lagos, had as its theme: ‘Reducing the violent tendencies in our school system through sensitisation and advocacy programmes.’

    Fowowe highlighted other forms of violence such as emotional, psychological, verbal, spiritual, financial, cultural/neglect, among others. “Religious bodies should include contemporary topics like rape, abortion and other violent acts in their bulletins, tracks, Sunday school manuals,” he argued.

    The event also featured the investiture of Prof Segun Akinbote from Department of Teacher Education, University of Ibadan as the second Fellow of ECAN.

  • Breast feeding can reduce children’s death

    The Kebbi State EU- UNICEF C4D Consultant, Mr Idris Nagia, has called for improved awareness about the benefits of breastfeeding. Briefing reporters in his office, Nagia said breastfeeding can reduce the death of children under five, adding that only 36 per cent of infants less than six months old are exclusively breastfed in the state.

    “With so much at stake, we need to do more to reach women with a simple, powerful messages like: Breastfeeding can save your baby’s life,”.  Also,   “no other preventive intervention is more cost effective in reducing the number of children who die before reaching their fifth birthdays.”

    He called for more advocates  to be cultivated, using new and creative ways to communicate with mothers and families.  “Raising awareness beyond the confines of the maternity ward is critical to reach these broader audiences,” he said.

    According to him, “initiation of breastfeeding within 30 minu-tes after birth saves mothers from the risk of  maternal death and exclusive breastfeeding on demand in the first six months of life without water or any other food will start every baby on healthy path in life, providing all the nutrients the baby requires for optimum growth and development’’.

    He added that UNICEF has   embraced the idea of using all means of communication and encourages others to do same by using the opportunity of World Breastfeeding Week to trigger action through out the year.   He said this year’s world brest feeding  day has  emphasised the role that every member of society can play to raise awareness about breast-feeding – a natural and best way of feeding babies.

  • Boom time for children fruit juice

    Boom time for children fruit juice

    The array of fruit juices for children on the shelf may throw their parents into confusion. To make a choice under this condition, it is advisable to consider products’aesthetics, among other factors, writes TONIA ‘DIYAN.

    The business landscape in Nigeria is undoubtedly attractive to investors because of the population size. Consequently, consumers may be confused in making their choice from the array of brands they find in the market. Nowhere is this dilemma more evident than in the foods and beverages’ category of the fast moving consumer goods sector.

    The consumer goods sector, comprising the food and drink category, non-food products and the retail category, compete for leadership through various offerings, particularly those brands targeted at children. For example, foods, such as Indomie noodles, already prepared custard in sachets from the stable of Chi, producers of Hollandia yoghurt, among others, lead the pack in the rat race to capture the hearts of children and their parents. Also, drinks such as Bobo, Viju Milk, Ribena, Happy Hour, Lucozade Boost, Capri-Sonne and Nigerian Breweries’ Maltina have all joined the fray.

    However, some of these brand owners face the challenge of ensuring that their products are accepted by their target market. According to Jack Trout and Al Ries in The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, marketing is not truly a battle of products, but a battle of perceptions and this implies that even if a product is of the highest attainable quality, brand owners must still work on the perception from consumers.

    Today, genetically modified or synthetic consumer goods are being widely promoted despite the protests against their use. This should give natural products an edge in the minds of consumers, who want the best.

    A fruit juice drink retailer at Alade market in Ikeja, Lagos, Mr Ikechukwu Ukomadu, said the demand for children fruit juice drink, which he sells, is unparalleled.

    Ukomadu stocks some drinks more than others, because they are preferred drinks for children worldwide and they control more than 80 per cent of the fruit drink market for children in the country. According to him, some contain 100 per cent natural ingredients and it is estimated that five billion pouches are sold every year in approximately 100 countries. A particular one, he said, is made with the best juice of sun ripened fruits available and contains no artificial flavours and colours or preservatives.

    “The silver pouch used to pack some of these fruit drinks have made some more popular than others, particularly among parents and children, as their designs make them easily portable. Most pouches are sturdy, hermetically sealed and tamper proof. They can withstand many tumbles and pass the hardness test in a freezer without bursting. This means that they can also be enjoyed as a tasty ice treat,” he said.

    The Nation Shopping spoke with some primary school pupils, who shared their experiences from their favourite fruit juice drink.  Majority said their choices are determined by consistent promotional offer a particular brand gives, some others said the taste of the drink is their attraction to a particular drink while others said the tamper proof nature of some of these drinks have kept them stuck with a particular brand as they won’t have to wipe their launch packs each time they keep the drink in them.

    A pupil of Caleb International Nursery and Primary School in Lagos, Nonye Akumeh said Capri-Sonne fruit juice brand has been consistent in giving promotional offers to children, likewise Bobo, which is why they have become her choice fruit juice drinks. “One of Capri-Sonne’s offers from which I benefited is the ‘Capri-Sonne School Surprise Offer.’ It provides rewards for kids, who patronise the brand. Rewards like taking children abroad on excursions or on a shopping spree to have fun. Bobo would insert exercise books and stationeries into their packs before selling them out,” she said.

    She added that most offers come with several other exciting gifts such as wrist watches, flash lights, pouches, colour pencil cases and many more that will be useful for kids at school. “There was an extra bonanza option, where children would submit Capri-Sonne flaps or Bobo caps and stand the chance of getting free Jumbo Crayons and Water Colour Boxes and sometimes trips to Disney land,” she said.

    For Chinelo Agwu, another pupil of the school, the taste of Ribena is incomparable and nourishing. ”I am really not particular about freebies, if I want some of those treats, my parents would buy them or make them available. I just love the taste of Ribena and the fact that it nourishes my body. And that is why everywhere I go, I opt for it rather than any other drink. I would rather not take any fruit juice if I don’t find Ribena,” she said.

    In today’s world, healthy living is uppermost in the minds of the people and mothers, in particular, tend to be extra careful with what they give to their children. It is obvious that many people, including children, do not drink enough. They tend to eat too much, but not drink enough! This is why parents use simple tricks such as buying fruit drinks to encourage their children to drink more.

    But in the long run, the children are only going to drink more if they like and enjoy the taste of the beverage. When children turn fussy about eating, parents turn to buying healthy and nourishing products that suit the children’s taste buds and in almost all cases, the children take the drink with a smile. This is where some universally recognisable drinks, that are perhaps most well known for their stand-up pouch packaging, beat other beverages on offer.

    Mrs Allero Ike, a housewife, who wants the best for her children, said her children’s school bags are not complete without their daily intake of their favourite fruit juice. “My children know what they want. If they want the best, they know what it is and I cannot give them what is close to the best. Nobody can fool them, they always ask for their favourite drink,” she said.

    The excitement of Gbemi, Mrs. Oladele’s four-year-old daughter, sighting her mother picking her favourite drink from the shelf in a supermarket last weekend, was a sight to behold. She confessed that the little girl will give her no rest if she failed to include the fruit drink in her purchases. “She loves the drink and I enjoy buying it for her because of its natural taste and as a supplement for her healthy development,” she said.

    Understandably, competition for patronage by operators in the sector is fierce. But in an increasingly health conscious world, consumers will only choose to buy the best. The brands that will ultimately survive the contest for consumer loyalty will be the ones with quality products manufactured locally, using world-class technology.

    Nevertheless, there are significant differences in their offerings, which define the competition and their respective performance in the marketplace. Many of the brands mentioned are a mixture of synthetic materials and natural ingredients.

    Nutritionists say some beverage drinks contain 100 per cent fruit ingredients that add to vitality and healthy growth of the child. This quality has naturally endeared such brands to discerning mothers.

  • ‘The hoodlums destroying Ekpeye land are our own children’

    ‘The hoodlums destroying Ekpeye land are our own children’

    Ekpeye land in Rivers State was relatively quiet, peaceful and of no news significance until the July 13, 2012 Okugbe fuel tanker disaster which claimed no fewer than 230 lives.

    Ekpeye Land is made up of two Local Government areas, Ahoada East and Ahoada West , both situated on the coast line of Orashi river close to Bayelsa State from the West and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area on the East.

    The 2013 flood, which swept across Ekpeye land and submerged homes, farmlands, killing and sacking families and their members among others, also brought the area into media reckoning.

    The violence which characterised the last general elections saw Ekpeye at the receiving end.  The land has not rested from mourning and crying from the murder of their love ones, and family members by youths suspected to be cult boys.

    No fewer than 100 persons have been killed in the area since mid-2014. There has hardly been any month, week or even day that passes without news of murder of person or persons being heard. Some were killed and their heads taken away; others were killed and their heads left but their bodies taken away or thrown into the river, creeks.

    Cult groups, such as the Icelanders and the Greenlanders, De-gbam and De-well group or the most recently the Ekpeye Liberation Movement are believed to be behind the killings .

    Although the latest group has not been associated with any killing, and their enemies not yet defined, but they reportedly claimed responsibility of bombing one Akarolo pipeline in Ahoada East.

    One of the groups, months back, invaded and attacked the residence of their highly revered monarch, (Eze Ekpeye Logbo), Eze Robinson O. Robinson, at Ahoada East, destroying cars parked and other valuables.

    They also killed the son of the Anglican priest who led the first move to find peace. The attack on him devastated and forced him out as the chairman of “Peace, security and reconciliation committee” of the two Ahoada LGAs.

    However, the reconstituted  “Peace, security and reconciliation committee”, led by another cleric, Friday Anthony, fondly called F.O.C., recently organised a one-day fasting and prayer to seek God’s intervention on the situation. The programme, which held at the Headquarters of Ahoada East, was well attended.

    Eze Robinson said: “It is very unpalatable, disheartening shocking. Degrading, sacrilegious and unpatriotic for some youths in Ekpeye land to sporadically and ‘chameleonically’ disguised themselves to fight, kill, kidnap, assassinate, steal, rape, commit Arson, Armed Robbery and go into war with their own blessed communities in Ekpeye land.

    “All economic activities in Ekpeye land have shattered and crumbled. No Ekpeye man or woman goes to the farm again to grow crops for the future. Our children do not go to school again, traders don’t go to the markets again to sell their wares. Tenants have deserted Ahoada main town and all Ekpeye communities.

    “Strangers (none indigenes), have all ran away to Port Harcourt for safety, because of our children who have decided to be hoodlums/criminals, committing so many atrocities at our watch and detriment.

    “Let us mirror ourselves and watch the communities we now ran to for shelter and security. Are there no youths in the areas we have run to? Don’t the youths there have parents and relatives to kidnap, assassinate, steal from and rob with arms, burn their houses, rape their wives, mothers and sisters as our Ekpeye youths are doing here?”

    He accused parents of encouraging the criminality in the land, when he said: “The hoodlums destroying Ekpeye land are our own children. They bring all the loots to our houses while we watch them with enthusiasm. Are we not ashamed that our sons are among the criminals that are unleashing mayhem on our land?

    “How can a responsible indigene of Ekpeye choose to live in the forest like wild beast when there are houses and homes to comfortably live in and thank God for creating them human being? Are they blaming and asking God why He did not create them to be wild animals that are living in the forests? Let them note that no one that has ever challenged the authority of God that was not visited with doom, King Nebuchadnezzar and lot’s wife are classical examples.

    “Let me once again plead with all Ekpeye sons and daughters who have contributed in one way or the other, to disparage, disintegrate, annihilate the unity of Ekpeye land to have a second thought and stop sponsoring the hoodlums by providing them with arms, ammunitions.

    “I beseech all my children who have taking to the paths of militancy to return home and surrender their guns to the police for safety sake and reunification of Ekpeye land, and also ensure your names are subsequently profiled for amnesty program and reintegration.”

    The Care Taker Committee (CTC) chairman of Ahoada East, Britain Ewor, admitted grave security challenge of cultism, kidnaping and other criminalities.

    Ewor expressed the willingness of the government to ensure sustained safety across the area and noted that his administration’s operation “Know your neighbour” pet project should be encouraged.

    “It is obvious that security in the two LGAs in Ekpeye land (Ahoada West and Ahoada East) is at its lowest ebb. All of our communities have suffered one form of insecurity ort the other, ranging from loss of loved ones to outright destruction of property.

    “There are others that are wounded either physically or psychologically. As a government we are doing our best to the safety of all, but it is shocking when the people easily compromise security.

    “The hoodlums who daily maim and kill our people live among us but our people either for fear; fail to volunteer information that could assist the security agents; I am appalled by this.

    “In as much as it is not within my powers to pass judgement on the grievances that gave rise to the present security challenges, it remains our right to condemn acts that are not part of our known norms and values.

    “The various killings and wanton destruction of property are alien to us and must be condemned. Ekpeye land has been so much streamed with blood, this is unacceptable and I condemn the perpetrators of the callous, senseless and wicked acts.”

    Rev. Anthony said it would take only God to ensure lasting security in Ekpeye land.

    He said: “As responsible citizens of Nigeria, we have quickly realised that the security and peace of our land will be possible only by the infinite grace and boundless mercy of our Supreme God.

    “This is why we have set up three types of prayer for Ekpeye land between now and October: Mercy prayer (already been held), Prayer of Peace and restoration and Prayer of thanksgiving.”

    The committee members warned against further killing of the ‘bad boys’ by the vigilante members of the community.

    “The Vigilante people must not go after the aggrieved sons and daughters of Ekpeye land and vice versa. The role of the vigilante however from now henceforth is limited to fighting thieves and armed robbers   caught disturbing the peace of our people.

    “No robber caught will be set free. Let there be calmness everywhere, we restate at this point that peace must return and gunfire must cease from all quarters in the land.”

    In his keynote message, title: “The roll of the Church in times like this” Rev. Ben Avor of First Baptist Church regretted that there is no respite despite the efforts by members of the committee to appeal and several visits to the youths camps to make them see reason to stop further killing and maiming.

    “The activities of these boys have disarrayed, communities destroyed, families members have been killed, there are weeping, crying and mourning in families because of insecurity in the land,” he said.

     

  • Foundation urges balanced diet for malnourished IDP children

    A Non Governmental Organization (NGO), YellowJerrycan‎ Save a Child, Lend a Hand Foundation has called on the Federal government to adopt a balance diet template to tackle malnutrition affecting Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the various camps in Nigeria. Initiator of the foundation, Ms. Adaora Onyechere, who said this at a press conference in Abuja, urged well-meaning Nigerians assist in tackling malnutrition among children in the IDP camps in the North-East.

    Onyechere, who explained that there is an increase of non balanced diet among the camps, also noted that most of the IDPs who need the food usually don’t get it. She said: “We are saying that it is not enough to just send food to the camps. If the food were enough, they will not be in the state they are right now. There is an increase of non balanced diet among the camps. “It is interesting as well because when you look at the formation and structure of the distribution of the food, the people who need the food usually don’t get the food. The accessibility of the food is not even made available.

    “There is no monitoring and evaluation system. We do know there are staple food been distributed. These are not the majority of the diet these people need. We have people who are toddlers.” She warned that if the federal government refuses to put a template in place to savage malnutrition in the various IDP camps, the situation could result in the outbreak of crimes. According to her, templates and structures are important in the fight against malnutrition, adding that there was need to depoliticize the issue and see it more as a time bomb waiting to explode.

    “The structure and the template should begin with one camp at a time; it is not enough to take 70 truckloads of food to each of the IDPs camp. They need to know what were they being given, what are the intervention plans given, what are the age categories, to what extent are these food going to be distributed and what is the template to be adopted for every other camp. “We need to harmonise. The federal government is doing all it can. I believe that certain duties could overwhelm NEMA as an agency. The federal government should begin to adopt template that are being posted by either NGOs, or well tried research organizations to be able to intimate all of these templates across board ‎so that in the interim we can have a referral and say this has worked for one camp and we can actually duplicate it in other camps.

    “If we don’t have a template, we might deal with not just malnutrition we might actually do with‎ outbreak of crimes because what we will begin to see is people leaving camp to look for substitute for likelihood especially for keep up with nutrition. Rice, oil and onions are not staple foods, when a child has no access to milk, beans after breastfeeding is bound to be malnourished.” ‎Also, Representative of Centre for Women and Adolescents Campaign, Hajia Asmau Soda, noted that meals required to curb malnutrition in the IDP camps are not being provided. “I think the emphasis is on the real food needed to fight malnutrition is really not provided probably because they are more expensive,” she said.

  • Our children and their enemies

    It was on June 16, that the world marked the 40th anniversary of the brutal killing of many schoolchildren at Soweto, South Africa, in 1976. The schoolchildren poured into the street to protest the use of Africaans as the language of instruction in schools and the miserably non-functional education they were given under the apartheid system. But rather than give ears to their complaints, the decidedly remorselessly violent authorities unleashed lethal, excessive force on them, killing a disproportionate number of the young protesters. More commonly known as ‘the Day of the African Child’ since 1991 when the Organisation of African Unity (now African Union) initiated it in honour of the exterminated pupils and other citizens in the Soweto uprising, the day raises awareness of the unending need for structured improvement of the education given to African children.

    In that connection, that anniversary gave governments, NGOs, and stakeholders on the continent and across the globe another opportunity to re-examine their commitments to the all-round well-being of the most vulnerable members of the human race – children. The day served to inspire adults everywhere to rededicate themselves to the protection, happiness, and wholesome development of children. That commemoration was signally remarkable for its lesson on the need for adults to devote themselves more heartily to working for a safe and positive present and future for children.

    Alas, for many adults in Nigeria, Oyo and Osun states particularly, that day in June was a day like any other. They neither bothered themselves with its significance, nor did they reflect on the roles they make children with or around them undertake. Rather, most of the adults in those states were (and are) busy misleading children and imbuing their minds with the most dangerous forms of indoctrinations, shaping them in their (adults’) own images and in the process making the children play roles that are totally unsuitable for their age.

    Specifically, I speak of the stories in the news about the last three weeks in regard to the decision of the Oyo State government to, in the words of Governor IsiakaAjimobi, ‘partner willing members of the society like alumni associations, mission bodies and corporate organisations to rejuvenate [the state public] education system’; and the Justice JideFalola June 3 judgement that affirmed the right of female Muslim students in Osun public schools to complement their school uniform with hijab without being humiliated, harassed, or punished.

    As reports had it, secondary school students in Oyo debouched into the streets and wrecked unimaginable destruction to public utilities as a way of protesting against the decision of the state government. In Osun State, what emerged as a form of protest by students against the hijab was no less a discomfortingly bizarre situation in which Christian students came to school in uniforms supplemented by varied religious garments like choir robes, cassocks, etc., creating in the process an offensive and reprehensible ecumenical gathering of schoolchildren. What cannot be gainsaid about the two perturbing cases is that adults were the inspiration behind them. In other words, while the fact subsists that children have their own agency, the motivation to destroy property and show up in school in unapproved apparels in the name of protesting certain decisions was largely engineered by some kidultswho delude themselves that they are adults. Whatever their justification for egging those children on, those adults are clearly the enemies of children.

    The enemies of children in Oyo and Osun are those who wickedly enlist children as soldiers in their crazy, superfluous religious wars. They are those who poison the minds of ‘God’s bits of wood’ (apologies to OsmaneSembene) with the toxic brew of myopia, hate, and intolerance. They are those who encourage children to express their displeasure through violence.

    Adults and parents need to understand that it is not in the place of children to teach. Theirs is to learn. Whether a school should be privatised or not does not concern children. It is sound, functional, all-round education that adults in their society owe them. It is the adults who must do all the talk and take decisions on how to ensure good education and proper upbringing for the children. To then ask children to go to town and fight a bad policy by destroying public property as was the case in Oyo (and Osun some months ago) was an indubitable anathema. It was the wrong way to teach children about resolving social problems.

    Likewise, it is not the duty of children to protect or defend any religious ideology. At their age, it is children that require protection. They are to go to school and learn and not to defend the cause of any religion. The minds of children should be cultivated to tolerate and respect the other and not to develop spiritual contempt for fellow beings. Those who inspired the Osun schoolchildren to go to school in church habiliments and protect Christianity, and the militant mullahs who are picketing schools and enforcing the hijab in the name of Islam are evilly religious soldiers whose minds are bereft of the grace of tolerance, egalitarian ethos, and the humanitarian imperative which enjoys every responsible adult to do no harm in their quest to resolve issues. Like some of their Muslim counterparts, these bigoted soldiers of the Lord Army in Osun are oddly dangerous to children and society as a whole.

    These graceless adults use children to accomplish their evil agenda by exploiting their manipulability, idealism, and narrow life experiences. If the energies and passions demonstrated in the matters of hijab and partnering private groups to run schools had been shown in complementing governments’ efforts in those two states, perhaps the public school systems there would be far better than they currently are. Ajimobi might have handled the partnership policy messily; the solution to it is not for some adults to destroy children by encouraging them to engage in acts of violence. And if a High Court judge in Osun says female students can complement their uniforms with hijab, the response from the Christian fold is not to arm Christian children with the message of hate and misplaced confrontation. If they consider Governor Aregbesola’s response to the judgement to be supportive of Muslims, the soldiers in Osun are still very wrong to think that encouraging children to do their battle is the appropriate response.

    Let parents and adults of our society note, as the child protection practitioner, Michael Wessells, argues, that any war that children are enlisted to fight will undergo ‘a multi-generational process that reproduces itself and visits untold suffering on following generations’. When adults mobilise children to fight their wars like it is in Oyo and Osun, such conflicts will be difficult to end and peace will become scarce in the society concerned.

    Religion warriors must understand, as a character in Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner exhorts, that ‘children aren’t colouring books. You don’t get to fill them with your favourite colours’. Adults everywhere owe children the duty of not allowing them to goose-step behind any evil that can poison their minds. Children must be exposed to the wholesome principle of resolving differences through peaceful means. They must be taught the virtues of tolerance through adults’ demonstration of it. They must be made to understand that matters revolving round school uniforms are neither more important than their education, nor are they determiners of who to relate with in school. The two religious groups in Osun must think more about solutions to problems without enlisting children to misbehave.

    If the enemies of children will not win in Oyo and Osun, and of course in the country as a whole, the governments in those states must avoid sloppy policies and get the people more involved in decision-making processes. In Osun, let the governor find a way to ensure that ‘uniforms’ do not become ‘duaforms’ in the public schools and learning takes centre stage than these noises about hijab and whatnot. The Oyo governor in his case must seek to involve all stakeholders in seeking to resolve the so-called problems of running the public schools. If leaders want progress and peace in their domains, they cannot afford to insult the people with horrible policies and the dowel of alienation. That way, the enemies of children will gain ascendancy and flourish.

     

    • Ademola writes from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.

  • Positive psychology for children

    PEOPLE are more likely to experience positive psychology if they take in the good things in each experience or situation. Even with regard to the past, if a person only focuses on the negative the brain will only be able to recognise the negative. The more the brain has access to the negative, the easier it becomes, because that is what is more memorable.

    When people experience well-being, they are experiencing a sense of emotional freedom; there is nothing negative that is holding them back from experiencing positive emotions. The need to give the average Nigerian and West African child more attention to avoid frustration and depression was stressed at a recent forum for children.

    Here, the West Africa Women Association (WAWA) in conjunction with United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) impressed it upon government at all levels the need to remain committed to the development of the Nigerian child.

    According to WAWA Focal Person in Nigeria, Mrs Beatrice Ubeku, government should take proactive measures aimed at improving the general wellbeing of the children across the country. Ubeku stressed that concerned individuals must build a synergy of cooperation with government to ensure a brighter future for Nigerian children, many of whom are disillusioned and dejected at the moment.

    In her remarks, Dr Mrs. Opral Benson advised children to shun all forms of social vices, saying such can jeopardise their future. “We can improve on what the different organisations, especially ECOWAS, WAWA, amongst others, are doing now by spending more time with our children; getting to know them better, talking and advising them. Also bringing them to programmes such as this and someday they would turn out to be great,” Mrs. Benson stressed.

    The Yeye Oge of Lagos also called on leaders to do all within their power to create an enabling environment that will give the Nigerian child a sense of belonging.

  • Delta Govt. pledges commitment to rights of women, children

    Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa on Wednesday expressed the state government’s commitment to protect the rights of women and children in the state.

    Okowa made the remarks when he received the President of Women Arise for Change Initiative, Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, who paid him a courtesy visit in Asaba.

    He said the Child Rights Act was domesticated in Delta in 2009 and that as a state, the Act would be diligently implemented.

    He added that “we intend to implement the Act diligently, if anybody is involved in the abuse of women and children, the person must stop, because we will take such issue up and the person will be prosecuted.

    “We must do what we can to safeguard the future of our children because it appears that many families have forgotten their roles right from the family level; it seems that values are lost.

    “As you carry on with your social advocacy, a lot needs to be done for families to play their roles of bringing up well trained children.”

    The governor, however, lamented situations where children grow up without feeling pains or not afraid of inflicting pains on others.

    He cautioned against any form of violence on children, women and less privileged in the society, adding that parents should ensure proper upbringing of their children and wards.

    He assured that government would take up any issue that concerned gender based violence and child abuse.

    He commended Okei-Odumakin for her organisation’s intervention to reduce violence against children, women and the less privileged in the society.

    Mrs Okei-Odumakin, who did a presentation on gender-based violence in the country, called on the governor to establish centres to handle such cases in the state.

    She, however, disclosed that her team was in the state to present policy guidelines on gender-based violence on young persons in Nigeria and to get the state to key into the programme.

  • Foundation celebrates out-of-school children

    Out-of-School-Children Empowerment Foundation (OSCEF), a non-governmental organsation (NGO),  marked the 2016 Children’s Day putting a smile on the faces of children and  honouring individuals and corporate organisations for their contributions to the society.

    Founder OSCEF, Mr Akeem Kelani, said the body supports government to get out-of-school children back in school. He is optimistic that achieving this will reduce crime in the society.

    “If these children are back in school, the level of poverty, crime, and terrorist attacks will reduce drastically. This is because if you are knowledgeable you will find it difficult to join bad company.”

    He said OSCEF through community effort and field work, has been able to rescue over 2,000 street children and dropouts back to school in Oshodi, Mushin, Agege, Alimosho, Kosofe and other areas, and monitor them effectively.

    Kelani said OSCEF achieved this  through sensitisation programmes and advocacy visits to communities  to educate them about the dangers  of not sending their wards to school.

    He however listed inadequate funding, inadequate school learning materials for the children as part of  challenges the foundation faces.

    Awards were given to second republic governor, Alhaji Lateef Jakande, Governor of Kano State, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, Lagos State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs Lola Akande, former Chairman, Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) , Mrs Gbolahan Daodu, and Founder, Little Saint Orphanage, Mrs Dele George.

    Thanking the organisation on behalf of the awardees, Mrs Daodu said “What makes it special is the fact that we are concerned about the plight of our children, even those that are already going to school not to talk of thousands of them that are out of school.

    This should be the concern of every individual because the children is our future.”

  • LUTH holds oral health education for children

    LUTH holds oral health education for children

    The Department of Child Dental Health, Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), has organised an oral health education session for children to commemorate the Children’s Day.

    The event was to educate the children on the importance of their teeth.

    Addressing the kids, a dentist, Dr. Akangbe Oluwatobi, said: “In a child’s life, there are two stages of teeth; the milk teeth and the permanent teeth. Good and healthy milk teeth will pave the way for the permanent teeth.Take good care of your teeth at your young age, because from ages six to seven, the adult teeth start to grow, and are 32 in number”.

    Speaking on brushing techniques, Akangbe advised that mothers should start brushing their children’s teeth immediately milk teeth appear at the age of six months, using, a smear of the appropriate paste. Meanwhile, brushing, he said, should be supervised for children below the age of seven years.

    Akangbe also warned that children below the age of five should not be allowed to brush their teeth without the supervision of their parents or guardians.

    “When there is bleeding in the gum, report to your parents and see a dentist immediately,” he counselled. Flossing is done to remove food particles between the teeth where the toothbrush may not be able to remove. It is necessary to floss regularly,” Akangbe added.

    He also stressed the importance of monitoring the texture of the bristles of toothbrushes used by children, noting that children should always use soft brushes. He added that, those under three years should use a little smear of toothpaste, compared to that of children above three years. Toothbrushes should be changed every three months or when the bristles are worn out.

    He said that there are toothpastes designed for each age grade, while also commenting on th0e ingredients. He said: “Toothpaste contains fluoride, which helps to repair and strengthen the tooth’s enamel as well as gentle abrasives to help polish the teeth, and remove stains and plaque. There is toothpaste for every age.”

    Regarding healthy diet for the formation of strong teeth, he advised mothers to feed their children exclusively with breast milk for at least six months. He added that at 12 months, parents should stop feeding children with feeding bottles.

    Warning on the insalubrity of giving children sweet drinks in feeding bottles, he admonished parents to give fresh milk, water and fruits to the children.