Jonas Ezieke, Abuja
Civil society organisations have raised fresh concerns over the alleged growing influence of foreign interests in policies and programmes affecting Nigerian children, calling on the National Assembly to scrutinise relevant legislation, educational frameworks and government policies to ensure they reflect the country’s social and cultural realities.
The organisations, led by the Centre for African Policy Research and Advice (CAFPRA) made the call in Abuja during a media engagement on children, family values, education and public policy.
They urged lawmakers to go beyond the consideration of individual bills and examine the broader policy frameworks, funding sources, partnerships and educational materials shaping programmes targeted at children and young people.
According to the groups, policies affecting children require heightened scrutiny because decisions taken today could have long-term consequences for families, communities and future generations.
Speaking at the engagement, CAFPRA Executive Director, Dr. Segun Adebayo, said African governments must ensure that policies adopted within their countries are firmly rooted in their own realities.
“We are dedicated to policies of the land, to be sure that the policies of government in Africa are consistent with the realities of Africa,” Adebayo said.
He said CAFPRA was concerned about the adoption of policy frameworks without adequate consultation with Nigerians who would ultimately be affected by them.
Adebayo therefore urged the National Assembly to ensure that parents, educators, civil society organisations, child-rights advocates, community leaders and other relevant stakeholders have meaningful opportunities to contribute to policies and programmes concerning children.
The organisation argued that Nigeria should not simply adopt international policy frameworks without first examining their relevance to the country’s cultural, social and institutional environment.
It particularly called for closer examination of concepts contained in some international frameworks dealing with children’s education, reproductive health, personal autonomy and gender.
CAFPRA said terms such as “bodily autonomy”, “sexual rights” and “gender identity” should be clearly defined and their implications carefully considered before being incorporated into legislation, government policy or educational materials meant for children.
The organisation maintained that the debate should not be reduced to ideological positions but should involve a careful assessment of what is appropriate, age-sensitive and consistent with Nigeria’s laws, culture and family structures.
Human rights lawyer and public affairs analyst, Sonnie Ekwowusi, who spoke on behalf of CAFPRA, said public opinion was increasingly becoming an important factor in determining whether controversial policies eventually gain legislative acceptance.
“Public opinion change is currently where they are going, because if public opinion does not change, it will never be passed as a law,” Ekwowusi said.
He suggested that policy advocacy was increasingly moving beyond government offices and legislative chambers to the wider public, where acceptance or resistance could ultimately determine the fate of proposed laws and policies.
CAFPRA disclosed that it had formally written to the Presidency and the leadership of the National Assembly to draw attention to its concerns.
The organisation said it would also engage relevant committees of the legislature and circulate policy recommendations among lawmakers as it intensifies its advocacy.
A policy researcher and media personality, Gold Boms, said the organisation was examining proposed legislation and government policies to determine whether they were consistent with Nigeria’s social environment.
“We are making sure that all the bills being passed, we are looking at them and saying, look, this is not aligned with our social reality,” Boms said.
He said such scrutiny was necessary to ensure that legislation was not only technically sound but also responsive to the realities of Nigerian families and communities.
The organisations also demanded greater transparency in the development, funding and implementation of programmes affecting children.
They urged government agencies and their development partners to disclose the objectives, sources of funding, content and implementation arrangements of programmes introduced into schools and communities.
Chris Yama, a representative of CYFPRA, described the issue as one that deserved wider public attention because of its potential impact on families and future generations.
“It is a very important conversation. It is on a topic that affects your children and your grandchildren. It is comprehensive sexuality education,” Yama said.
He called for greater involvement of parents and communities in decisions concerning educational programmes targeted at children.
A child-rights advocate with InnerCity Missions for Children, Jane Chukwu, brought the discussion to the realities confronting vulnerable children across Nigeria.
Chukwu said her organisation’s work with children living in difficult circumstances had demonstrated the urgent need for policies to be grounded in the realities of poverty, family breakdown, lack of access to education and inadequate child protection.
“We are a solution-based organisation. We don’t theorise about child protection. We believe it is every day; our team walks to the streets of Nigerian cities. We pick up children who already lost what today’s briefing is talking about,” Chukwu said.
She disclosed that the organisation was establishing a free school in Abuja for children from vulnerable backgrounds and had also introduced educational and vocational initiatives aimed at helping young people rebuild their lives.
She stressed that protecting children required more than policy pronouncements, arguing that government and stakeholders must also address the social and economic conditions that leave children vulnerable.
CAFPRA also referenced developments in countries including Liberia and Zimbabwe, alleging that some programmes relating to education, reproductive health and family issues had received external support.
The organisation called on Nigerian lawmakers to examine the origins, funding arrangements, partnerships and implementation structures of similar programmes operating in Nigeria.
As part of its broader advocacy, CAFPRA disclosed plans to present an African Charter on Family Values and Sovereignty to the National Assembly.
The organisation said the proposed charter would provide an additional framework for discussions on family values, national sovereignty and the development of policies that reflect African circumstances.
“We are going to bring that charter to our National Assembly,” Adebayo said.
The organisation said it would continue engaging lawmakers, government institutions, civil society groups, parents, educators and other stakeholders in an effort to influence the policy debate.
The CSOs also urged the media to intensify investigative reporting around policies and programmes affecting children, particularly by examining their origins, funding sources, objectives and implementation.
They maintained that Nigerians should have sufficient information to understand who develops, funds and implements programmes that directly affect children and families.
Ultimately, the organisations called on the National Assembly to ensure that policies affecting Nigerian children are subjected to broader consultation, greater transparency and rigorous legislative scrutiny, insisting that Nigeria’s social and cultural realities must remain central to decisions concerning the nation’s children.
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