We’ve documented over 200,000 Almajarai in Kaduna State — UNICEF

As a part of the efforts to reduce the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria, the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) on Friday said it has documented over 200,000 Almajarai children in its system in Kaduna State.

Child Protection Specialist, UNICEF, Kaduna Field Office, Dr Wilfred Mamah, who stated this in an interview with newsmen shortly after the commemoration of this year’s children’s day celebration at Kaduna State Government House added that UNICEF has launched an innovative programme with the Kaduna State Government called “Children in street situation” including adolescent girls.

“For example, the concern has always been lack of data of Almajirai children. What we did was go and see these children that are Almajirai and we documented over 200,000 children in our system. With that documentation, we know their challenges.

“We are working with the education team on some of them that will go back to school, some are going to be supported to learn a trade. We are doing a similar thing in terms of young girls. A lot of young girls because of teenage pregnancies, early marriage and lack of school are out of school.

“So we are using Child protection information management system to capture these adolescent girls from age ten to 19 to know where they are and return them to school,” he said.

He then commended the state government saying “it has made an impact in child protection in terms of laws like child protection and welfare law which was passed in 2018. Not only that the law passed, but the government also created structures like State and Local Government child protection implementation committed cutting across all the sectors.

“These are the people that will ensure we monitor progress. The state has also created family courts and as well made provisions for instruments for children that conflict with the law with support from UNICEF.

“The state also supported by UNICEF has created what we call diversion centre which ensures that when children commit offences, they should be somewhere different from prisons. All these are quite commendable and recommended for other states especially here in the North to emulate,” he added. (Daily Sun)

•Representatives of school children, Save the Children, UNICEF and Kaduna State Executive Council members during the commemoration of this year’s children’s day at Government House Kaduna on Friday.