The Nation Newspaper

Tag: UNICEF

  • Severe malnutrition: 32,000 on death row in Jigawa, says UNICEF

    The United Nation Children Education Fund (UNICEF) has warned 32, 000 infants may die in Jigawa State from severe malnutrition and other child-related diseases.

    Its nutrition specialist Philomena Irene stated this in Dutse in a paper presented in a one-day workshop on manpower development institute.

    Irene said the discovery is contained in a survey carried out by the agency under “ORIE Dissemination of research”.

    She said “a serious and urgent action must be in place to curtail the disaster.”

    According to the research, 600,000 children of the 1,100,000 under five years old in the state were stunted, which is equal to more than the national average.

    She stressed that at least 165,000 children of six to 59 months old are severely malnourished and nine times likely to die without treatment.

    Irene explained that as part of the WINNN project sustainability strategy, ORIE was engaged by DFID to conduct operational research that will contribute to greater and wider awareness for nutrition.

    She assured that the Fund will continue to create a platform to disseminate the research finding for other states.

  • Tambuwal donates office to UNICEF

    Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto at the weekend donated an office apartment to the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

    The edifice  to serve as field office for Sokoto, Zamfara and Kebbi states at an exclusive area in the capital were officially opened by the governor.

    It houses various departments of the global agency which promotes and projects intervention programmes on health, education and water sanitation.

    The opening was preceded by the signing of a MoU on child education, health and malnutrition in the state by Tambuwal and UNICEF’s Country Representative in Nigeria, Ms Jean Gough.

    Tambuwal said his administration takes the issue of child education seriously.

    “We have so far met our target for school enrolment for 2016. So signing of this agreement is one event we have been waiting for as it will ensure the improvement of the lives of children in various sectors of development.

    “We look forward to collaborate with any organization across the globe in making the state achieve all necessary needs across all sectors,” he added.

    He appealed for more supports from the UN agency while stating the state government was committed to ensuring successful implementations of all agreements.

  • UNICEF to Nigerians: protect rights of the child

    UNICEF to Nigerians: protect rights of the child

    THE United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has urged the citizenry to stand up and protect the rights of the child in the face of violence and insecurity.

    The  theme of this year’s Children’s Day is: “Protect the rights of the child in the face of violence and insecurity: End child marriage” .

    A statement by UNICEF Representative in Nigeria Jean Gough noted that this year’s theme “helps to shed a much-needed light on the unprecedented levels of violence against children in Nigeria in the recent past and present”.

    In the Northeast, UNICEF noted, “we have witnessed and continue to witness grave violations of children’s rights – killings, abductions, sexual violence and use in suicide bombings by Boko Haram”.

    “More than 1.2 million children have been displaced – more than half of them below the age of five,” the statement added.

    It said children living away from the crisis in the Northeast were also at risk of violence.

    “This year’s Children’s Day offers the opportunity to highlight the significant pledges made by the Federal Government, NGOs, religious groups and the media last September to join hands to end violence against children, and call for renewed efforts by all stakeholders to turn the commitments they made into action for children.

    “There is no better time than today to take action. Together, let’s end violence against children,” Gough said.

  • EU, UNICEF hail Bayelsa on Child Rights Law 

    The European Union (EU) and the United Nations Children Funds (UNICEF), Thursday, commended Bayelsa State for domesticating the Child Rights Act.

    Bayelsa became the 23rd state in Nigeria to ensure the legal protection of children from all forms of violence, through the domestication of the Act.

    It was gathered that UNICEF, the State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, the State Ministry of Justice and civil society groups, especially the Child Protection Network (CPN), advocated for the passage of the law.

    The law was reportedly passed under the Support to Justice Sector Reform Programme, a €26m initiative funded by the EU.

    The law passed by the Kombowei Benson-led state House of Assembly, was assented to on May 6, by the state Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson.

    The law for the first time in state criminalises violence against children and sets out the role of every stakeholder in preventing and responding to violence against children, which is said to be widespread in Nigeria.

    According to UNICEF, a national survey it conducted in conjunction with the National Population Commission (NPC), the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and UNICEF, in September last year found that six in 10 children suffer one or more types of violence before they reach the age of 18 years.

    Quoting the report, UNICEF said: “One in two suffers physical violence, one in four girls and one in 10 boys suffer sexual violence and one in five boys and one in six girls suffer emotional violence. Most children never tell anyone what happened to them. Less than four per cent ever receive the support they need to recover.”

    The Representative of UNICEF in Nigeria, Jean Gough, who spoke in Yenagoa added: “In response to these findings, President Muhammadu Buhari launched the Year of Action to End Violence against Children, calling on states to take action to strengthen their laws, policies and services to protect children.

    “Bayelsa State has heeded the Federal Government’s call and is warmly congratulated. This groundbreaking law is a significant step in protecting and supporting the millions of children suffering physical, sexual and emotional violence every year in Nigeria”.

    In his remarks, Dickson said the law would offer protection for children in the state.

    He said: “I am delighted that the new Child Rights Law will offer protection for children in Bayelsa state. I stress that anyone caught violating the rights of children will be prosecuted according to the provisions of this new law”.

    Also, the Head of EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Michel Arrion, welcomed the domestication of the Act by Bayelsa State.

    Arrion urged other states which yet to do so to follow the example of the state saying: “Bayelsa has taken an important step to further the protection of children in Nigeria”.

  • UNICEF, Rivers colaborate to protect women, children in Niger Delta

    United Nation Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) is set to partner Rivers State government to protect the rights of children and women in the Niger Delta.

    Mr. Wilbroad Ngambi, UNICEF Chief of Field office led other members of the organisation    on a courtesy visit to Rivers State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning Isaac Kamalu in his office in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital.

    Ngambi  informed the commissioner of the creation of UNICEF Port Harcourt office that would coordinate the organisation’s operations in four states of Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Delta. He  said the port Harcourt would help them to serve the people better.

    He  said the idea of making Rivers State the zonal office was to help protect  the rights of women and children in the region.

    He noted that the partnership with Rivers State government is a sign of commitment to strengthen the existing collaboration, adding that part of the effort is the opening up  of a field office to cover four Niger Delta States within the region.

    He thanked the Ministry of Budget and Economic planning for the effective coordination of the programmes and collaboration between UNICEF and Rivers State government.

    Ngambi said: “With a deep sense of humanity and poise  to work with your Ministry toward delivering result for children and women in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, South-South geopolitical zone, I found it highly important to perform my first official function to ensure a good synergy.

    “On behalf of UNICEF, I extend our hand of partnership to record positive exploits for children and women in the region. UNICEF has been supporting Rivers State in programme such as health and nutrition for child survival and development, education, water and sanitation.”

    Kamalu assured UNICEF’s team of Rivers State government corporation and assistance in all area it’s may  want the government to render assistance.

    He said Governor  Nyesom Wike was delighted when he heard that UNICEF has opened their regional office in Port Harcourt. He also announced that the governor has ordered the release of counterpart fund for better cooperation.

  • Cambodia launches plan to end hunger by 2025

    The Cambodian government in collaboration with the UN, launched the national action plan for Zero Hunger Challenge (ZHC) on Wednesday, an initiative to eradicate hunger in the Southeast Asian country by 2025.

    Deputy Prime Minister Yim Chhay Ly, also chairman of the Council for Agricultural and Rural Development, speaking at the launching ceremony, said that the government was committed to achieving the sustainable development goal to end hunger.

    Yim added that the ZHC initiative would make them also to achieve food security, improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.

    “The government is looking forward to working with development partners, civil society organisations and the private sector to eliminate hunger and malnutrition in Cambodia by 2025,’’ he said.
    He said the ZHC initiative was to assist the government to achieve the goal by the target date.

    According to Yim, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) are providing collective assistance to help Cambodia with the National Action Plan to implement the ZHC initiative.
    FAO Regional Representative Kundhavi Kadiresan said it was estimated that over 2 million Cambodians out of the kingdom’s 15 million people are living in hunger.

    “We commend the government for its strong commitment to end hunger and we are positively optimistic that we can achieve this goal within the timeframe,’’ she said.

     

  • Fate of Chibok girls remains unknown says UN

    Fate of Chibok girls remains unknown says UN

    The United Nations {UN} on Friday says the plight of 219 Chibok schoolgirls who were abducted two years ago is a major conflict that is affecting the North-Eastern communities.

    Fatma Samoura UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria said that up to 7,000 women and girls might be living in abduction and sex slavery.

    “Humanitarian agencies are concerned that two years have passed, and still the fate of the Chibok girls and the many, many other abductees is unknown,” she said.

    The statement quoted Samoura as saying that the abducted girls had suffered so much at the hands of their captors as they had been on forced recruitment, forced marriage, sexual slavery and rape, and have been used to carry bombs.

    “Between 2,000 and 7,000 women and girls are living in abduction and sex slavery,” said Jean Gough, Country Representative of the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF.

    Women and girls, who have escaped Boko Haram have reported undergoing a systematic training programme to train them as bombers, according to UNICEF.

    It said that 85 per cent of the suicide attacks by women globally in 2014 were in Nigeria.

    In May 2015, it was reported that children had been used to perpetrate three-quarters of all suicide attacks in Nigeria since 2014.

    Many of the bombers had been brainwashed or coerced.

    As the Nigerian military recaptures territory from Boko Haram, abducted women and girls are being recovered.

    Over and above the horrific trauma of sexual violence these girls experienced during their captivity, many are now facing rejection by their families and communities, because of their association with Boko Haram.

    “You are a Boko Haram wife, don’t come near us,” one girl reported being told.

    “Effective rehabilitation for these women and girls is vital, as they rebuild their lives,’’ the statement said.

     

    The UN notes that children have suffered disproportionately as a result of the conflict.

    The Chibok abduction was not an isolated incident.

    In November 2014, 300 children were abducted from a school in Damasak, Borno, and are still missing.

    A UNICEF report, released earlier this week, states that 1.3 million children have been displaced by the conflict across the Lake Chad Basin, almost a million of whom are in Nigeria.

    Similarly, Human Rights Watch House reported that 1 million children had lost access to education.

    “The abducted Chibok girls have become a symbol for every girl that has gone missing at the hands of Boko Haram, and every girl who insists on practicing her right to education,” said Munir Safieldin, Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria.

    The UN says more need to be done by the Nigerian government and the international community to keep them safe from the horrors other women and girls have endured.

    Safe schools are a good start, but safe roads and safe homes are also needed, it says.

  • Cross River, UNICEF, USAID seek end to violence against children

    Cross River, UNICEF, USAID seek end to violence against children

    As part of the measures to end violence against children in Cross River State,

    a two-day multi-sector workshop is being organized in Calabar, the state capital.

    The workshop was organized the state Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development and the United Nation’s Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF).

    Child Protection Specialist with UNICEF, Mr Tatenda Makoni, who decried the spate of violence against children in the country, classified them into physical, sexual and emotional violence.

    Makoni, while making a presentation of the findings of VAC survey in the country, said approximately six out of 10 children experience some form of violence.

    According to him, one out of two children experience physical violence; one in four girls and one in ten boys experience sexual violence; while one in six girls and one in five boys experience emotional violence.

    These, he said have far-reaching consequences on the children and the society at large.

    Speaking on the prevalence of violence in Nigeria, Child Protection Specialist UNICEF Nigeria, Enugu Field Office, Mrs Nkiru Maduechesi, stressed the need for all stakeholders to work together to end the scourge of violence against children in the society.

    Commissioner for Women Affairs in the state, Mrs Stella Odey, said the state, which already has a Child Rights Act in place, has zero tolerance to any kind of abuse against children.

  • UNICEF, EU harp on clean water, better jobs in Bayelsa

    It has always been said that water is everywhere inBayelsa state, but there is no potable water to drink. Bayelsa is, indeed, about 80 per cent water and 20 per cent land. But the residents still suffer from lack of drinkable water.

    The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and the European Union (EU) have insisted that there is no alternative to clean water. Both EU, UNICEF and the Bayelsa State Broadcasting Corporation embarked on massive campaign for clean water and the role of water in creating better jobs across the state during the 2016 World Water Day christened Better Water, Better Jobs.

    UNICEF and its partners got children especially pupils in schools involved in their clean-water campaign. The team held one of the water events at the Rev. Proctor Memorial School, Kaiama, Kolokuma-Opokuma Local Government Area.

    The venue of the event was congested with over 200 students in attendance. It was a programme that exposed the students to significance of water and the need to avoid having contacts with contaminated or polluted water.

    In his speech on water, a representative of the Bayelsa State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASSA), Winikime Asingbe, said everybody needs access to clean water. He said any attempt to use contaminated water will lead to water-borne diseases.

    Addressing the attentive students, he said: “We need to have access to clean water. There are many things we do with water like washing, drinking, cooking our food and others. We should always endeavor to drink clean water.

    “We should not drink dirty water from the well, from the water tunnels or gutters that carry stagnant waters and also the rain water we collect with our drums. When we drink dirty water we are exposed to water borne diseases like cholera, typhoid fever, malaria and tuberculosis.

    “So we should drink clean water everyday to avoid being sick. We should also wash our hands with clean water. We should always wash our hands. There shouldn’t be a time frame for washing of our hands.

    “We should wash our hands whenever we wake up from sleep, before we eat, after playing football, after going to the toilet, when we come back from school, before we go to sleep.

    “We should wash our hands after each activity of the day and after washing our hands we should not clean our hands with towels because our towels might be dirty rather you shake off the water or leave your hands to dry off.”

    Speaking on the theme; water and jobs, Asingbe said water has created many jobs across the world. He said many people work in water-related companies adding that water has been able to stimulate the economy.

    He said: “Water means Jobs. Water is essential building block of life. But it is more than just essential to quench thirst or protect health; water is vital for creating jobs and supporting economic, social, and human development.

    “Today half of the world’s workers – 1.5 billion people work in water related sectors. Moreover, nearly all jobs, regardless of the sector, depend directly on water.

    “Yet despite the indelible link between jobs and water, millions of people whose livelihoods depends on water often not recognized or protected by basic labour rights.”

    He said the year’s theme focused on the central role that water plays in creating and supporting good quality jobs.

  • Girl-child education: Sokoto, UNICEF collaborate on teacher training

    No fewer than 830 female teachers are undergoing training under a pioneer scheme anchored by Sokoto government in collaboration with the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF).

    The female train-the-trainee scheme is being executed under UNICEF’s Girls Education Project (GEP3) and aims to provide enough role models for female students especially in rural communities in different parts of the state, says the information on UNICEF website.

    The target is to train female teachers from rural areas who would in turn go back to their communities to teach.

    Maryam Usman Na’ibi, a Consultant overseeing the implementation of the project, told the wife of the state Governor Hajiya Mariya Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, that the project also aims to get out-of-school rural children back to school without further delay.

    Na’ibi, who led a team on a sensitisation visit to Mrs Tambuwal, said: “We have discovered that among the reasons behind girls dropping out of school are poverty, religious misconception, ignorance, cultural beliefs and insecurity. Parents are afraid of sending their girl children to school because of fear that they may be molested by male teachers.

    “So to reassure communities holding such misconceptions, we decided to train female teachers from among themselves who will in turn take the lead in teaching children from their localities,” she added.

    Na’ibi said to take care of poverty issues, the Sokoto State government and UNICEF introduced a cash transfer programme where mothers or care givers get N5000 monthly for sending a girl child to school to assist them buy books and other things for the girls.

    The trainee female teachers are getting paid to aid their education while at the end of their studies, they are absorbed into the state civil service as teachers in their localities.

    In her remarks, Mrs Tambuwal lauded the partnership and promised to support the project by forwarding their complains to the government for further action.

    So far, the GEP3 is implemented in six local government areas: Binji, Bodinga, Gudu, Goronyo, Kebbe and Wurno.