UNICEF said the development is a victory for the children of
Borno, including recognition of a legal framework for their protection against
recruitment and use by armed groups, child labour and sexual abuse, among other
violations of their rights.
Governor Zulum signed the Borno State Child Protection Bill
into law on Monday, marking an end to years of efforts to provide a legal
framework that recognises the rights of children in the state to education,
health and protection from all forms of abuse.
With the Child Protection Bill signed into law, Borno
becomes the 29th state in Nigeria to domesticate the Child Rights Act enacted
by the Federal Government in 2003. Just seven states - Adamawa, Bauchi, Gombe,
Kebbi, Yobe, Kano and Zamfara States - have yet to domesticate the Act.
Borno State has remained the epicentre of protracted armed
conflict for more than 12 years. Over 300,000 children have been killed in
Nigeria’s north-east, while over one million have been displaced. In Borno
State, 330,389 children are out of school, according to the Universal Basic
Education Commission. As with Adamawa and Yobe States, the conflict has also
impacted essential health, nutrition and child protection services.
“Governor Zulum has done the right thing – and the children
of Borno State are the big winners. I commend Governor Zulum, the Borno State
House of Assembly and other stakeholders who worked tirelessly to domesticate
the Child Rights Act in Borno State,’’ said Peter Hawkins, UNICEF
Representative in Nigeria. “UNICEF expects that stakeholders will go on to
enforce the rights of children as prescribed in the Borno State Child
Protection Law.”
“For too long, children in Borno State have suffered the
consequences of protracted conflict. Children have died or been maimed from
unexploded devices, been kidnapped and recruited and used by armed groups.
Girls have been especially impacted, including by sexual abuse and violence.
The Borno State Child Protection Law will offer these children hope that things
can change and perpetrators held accountable.
“UNICEF calls on other states in the north-east and indeed
across the country to expedite action to domesticate and implement the Federal
Child Rights Act. It is unacceptable that armed conflict, displacement,
violence, poverty and other abuses continue to turn Nigerian children into
direct and indirect victims of conflict and other human rights violations,’’
said Peter Hawkins.
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