Chinyere Amalu
17 March 2009
Enugu — UNICEF Chief Field officer, Enugu, Mrs. Maureen Zubie-Okolo, last week clarified the controversy surrounding figures contained in 2009 World Children's report, about the state of children in Nigeria, saying the data were verifiable and a good instrument for advocacy.
In her opening remark at a two-day media dialogue on the State of the World's Children Report in Enugu, Okolo said the report which is produced annually with data on every country was aimed at scaling up country action on reducing infant mortality.It could be recalled that the First Lady, Hajiya Turai Yar'Adua and Prof. Dora Akunyili, Minister of Information and Communication, at the launch of the Report, had commented that the Report failed to take cognisance of government efforts to reduce infant mortality, thereby requesting for improvement on future reports.
Okolo however said the rating as contained in the Report was not aimed at ridiculing any country but to serve as a potent resource for countries to evaluate the state of their children.
"UNICEF was working with government on an Integrated Maternal Newborn and Child strategy to reduce incidences of infant and maternal mortality in the country.
"Such strategies include; massive immunisation support to government and support for the roll back malaria project to avert preventable infant deaths."
She however, called on the media to champion the advocacy of putting child survival issues on the front burner, adding that media as a partner in development has a great role to play in ensuring that children remained a developmental issue.
Speaking on the rising "Child Witches" phenomenon, Mrs Nneka Oguagha, UNICEF Child Protection specialist attributed the cause to poverty, breakdown of family structure and collapse of extended family and increase in violence against children.
She said the practice was rooted in traditional beliefs. UNICEF has concluded arrangements to establish child protection networks for prevention of violence, abuse, trafficking and child labour in vulnerable states, adding that the fund would undertake a study on the phenomenon.
The State of the World's Children 2009 focuses on maternal and newborn health and identifies the intervention and actions that must be scaled up to save millions of lives. The report details the urgent action needed to accelerate progress worldwide to meet the MDG target to reduce maternal mortality ratio by three quarters by 2015.
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