AU ECOSOCC advocates domestication of child rights by states

Mon, Oct 12, 2020
By editor
3 MIN READ

Africa

ADAORA Onyechere, Head, Women and Gender Affairs Cluster Committee of the African Union’s Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC), Nigeria chapter, has advocated for the domestication of the Child Rights Act.

Onyechere made the assertion when she spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Owerri as the world observed the International Day of the Girl Child.

NAN reports that the International Day of the Girl Child is marked annually on Oct.11 and the theme for 2020 is: “My Voice, Our Equal Future’’.

The UN General Assembly (UNGA) had on Dec. 19, 2011, adopted resolution 66/170 to declare every Oct. 11 as the International Day of the Girl Child.

It is a day set aside by the UN to focus attention on addressing the challenges of the female folk in the society with a view to promoting girl child empowerment.

Onyechere called on some of the 36 state Houses of Assembly in the country that have yet to domesticate the  Child Rights Act as a way of addressing the challenges of the girl child at the grassroots level to do so.

Onyechere, a  former Senior Special Assistant on Information and Advocacy to former Imo Governor, Emeka Ihedioha, said the promulgation of such laws would serve to checkmate the spate of gender-based violence in the country.

“We need to domesticate the Child Rights Act across the 36 states of the federation.

“A toll free number domiciled in the Ministry of Women Affairs for reporting cases of gender-based violence will not be a bad idea too.

“All of these will aid agencies of government such as the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) to effectively carry out their constitutional responsibilities as well as help to ensure that offenders are named and shamed,’’ she said.

Onyechere also called for financial empowerment and inclusion of women across all sectors in major economic decisions as a way of encouraging entrepreneurship among the female folk.

“If we are deliberate about financial inclusion, we will be committed to gender budgeting and thus encourage entrepreneurship and innovation among our women.

“Countries such as  Rwanda, Namibia, Seychelles and South Africa are doing well in this regard and Nigeria, as the big brother of other African countries cannot afford to be left behind,’’ she added.

Onyechere, however, called on girls and young women to embrace responsible mentorship that prioritises the needs of the girl-child as a panacea for the sustainable development of the female folk. (NAN)

– Oct. 12, 2020 @ 14:25 GMT |

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