Kuni Tyessi in Abuja
The federal government has validated over 40 new, revised policy documents and submitted Nigeria’s long-overdue combined 5th to 8th periodic country reports to the UN Committee on Rights of the Child.
The milestone was announced by the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Ms. Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim at the closing ceremony of the National Review and Validation Meeting held at Abuja Continental Hotel.
In her remarks, the Minister disclosed that a 2024 diagnostic review found outdated policies, fragmented coordination, and no standard operating procedures for frontline workers.
The 4-day exercise restructured Nigeria’s policy architecture around women, children, families, and vulnerable populations, with updated policies that include: “National boy child policy for mental development and protection of boys.
The policies include revised national children policy that tackles digital safety and online protection, national care economy policy that recognizes and reduces unpaid care burden on women, SGBV and SARC Policy that standardizes support for survivors nationwide, as well as guidelines for chaperones setting accountability rules for adults with children.
According to her, “The true strength of a nation is not measured by its gross domestic product alone. The true strength of a nation is reflected in the lives it uplifts, the hope it inspires, and the protective embrace it extends to its women, children, families, and most vulnerable citizens”.
“While we talked about protection in conference rooms, our women, children, and families were left exposed in the gaps between policy intent and actual service delivery”.
The minister stressed that “Policies without execution guidelines are simply wishes”, so all documents come with oversight plans for all 774 LGAs.
Nigeria also cleared backlog of UN Child Rights reports, which the minister said “boldly reasserts its leadership on the global stage”, as the policies will power two flagship programs.
The minister warned that success won’t be measured in Abuja conference rooms but “by the security of a child in a rural village, the safety of a woman in a workplace”, and therefore urged civil servants to take World Bank-backed SPESSE training to build a professional social sector workforce.
She added that under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, Nigeria must measure progress by real, tangible human outcomes not just economic indicators.
