The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says there is urgent need for increased spending on Child Protection Services as Nigeria loses N1.42 trillion to Violence Against Children (VAC) annually.
According to UNICEF, this is equivalent to 1.6 per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Profit (GDP).
It called for a 0.1 per cent reallocation based on the current levels of consolidated CP expenditure of Nigeria’s budget to increase total consolidated CP expenditure by 63 per cent.
The call was made on Tuesday at the launch of two survey documents,” A Financial Benchmark for Child Protection, Nigeria Study, Volume 1 and “The Economic Burden of Violence Against Children” in Lagos.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that there was a wake-up call by President Muhammadu Buhari in September 2015 for a National Campaign to End Violence against Children (VAC) in Nigeria.
Ms Juliane Koenlg, UNICEF Abuja, presented the report of the studies on behalf of the consultants of the survey.
Koenlg said: “The analysis of the economic costs shows that violence against children carries a considerable burden in Nigeria.
“The findings provide a strong evidence-base for urgent prioritised development and funding of interventions by all stakeholders for the reduction of violence against children.
“The adverse consequences of childhood violence affect not only children as individuals, but by extension, families, communities and societies.
“Nigeria’s future economic growth and development, may unfortunately, be compromised if sustained, commuted support and resources to Nigeria’s Child Protective Systems are not secured.
“These systems are essential in the identification and prevention of suspected cases involving violence against children as well as to ensure immediate access to health and protective services for victims when warranted.”