Girl Child: Experts On Her Safety, Empowerment

The need to put an end to such nagging socio-cultural issues as unwanted pregnancy, forced early marriage, gender-based violence, limited access to higher education and poor reproductive health services among others, was the focus during this year’s celebration of the International Day of the Girl Child.

At the event, held at Oakwood Park Hotels, Ikoyi, Lagos, advocates, activists, parents and guardians spoke with one voice at the unveiling of a musical campaign titled: Se e bi omo, meaning treat her as your child… be her voice. They stressed the urgency of putting an end to all the identified obstacles that have been hindering the empowerment and emergence of the girl-child in Nigeria.

They also addressed the demeaning stereotype status foisted on the girl-child in Nigeria, and globally, where adolescent girls face social, economic and political barriers. They pointed out that in order to meet the UN’s ‎SDGs, one of which targets gender equality to be achieved by 2030, voices must speak up for the rights of the girl child.
The programme, which was the fourth to be celebrated, focused on adolescent girls and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

According to the UN, more than 700 million women were married as children (below 18 years of age), with more than one in three—or some 250 million—married before 15. And because child brides are often unable to effectively negotiate safe sex, they are often vulnerable to sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies.
The body equally revealed that every 10 minutes, somewhere in the world, an adolescent girl dies as a result of violence. In emergencies, adolescent girls are especially vulnerable to sexual violence, and in some cases, are abducted and exploited for sexual purposes by armed groups. Nearly half (44 per cent) of adolescent girls worldwide aged 15 to 19 think a husband or partner is justified in hitting or beating his wife or partner under certain circumstances.

The United Nations General Assembly declared every October 11 as the International Day of the Girl Child, in order to recognise girls’ rights and the unique challenges facing them around the world. This year, as the international community assesses progress under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) since their implementation in 2000 and sets goals to be achieved by 2030, girls born at the turn of the millennium have reached adolescence, and the generation of girls born this year will be adolescents in 2030. So, as the achievements of the past 15 years and the planning of sustainable development goals for the next 15 are being reflected on, it becomes ripe to consider the importance of social, economic, and political investment in the empowerment of adolescent girls as fundamental to breaking the intergenerational transmission of poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination, as well as achieving equitable and sustainable development outcomes.

Speaking on the rights of the girl child, the Principal Director, Imperial Music College (IMC) and Convener, Se e Bi Omo Advocacy Team, Rev. Olurotimi Taiwo, who is the initiator of the project said, “The holy writ documents an interesting story in Numbers 26:33; Numbers 27:1, where Zelophehad had children, but no son. After his death, he had left behind an estate, an inheritance, and no sons. But he had something great going for him. He had five beautiful and courageous daughters – Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah.

“Numbers 27:1 says the daughters of Zelophehad refused to accept the status quo. They made a responsible protest and argued their case in the right quarters. Moses, ‎ God’s representative was among them. They told Moses, ‘Our father had no sons and so what? Should we not inherit him?’

“And Moses was wise enough to also seek God’s face on the matter. God’s response to Moses that they should be obliged displays God’s perspective on the female legitimacy to inheritance, equal status and rights.”

He stated that the first female rights advocates were successful in their assignments. Taiwo, who is also the Lead and Vision Pastor, at Victory Baptist Church, Ajah, Lagos, said:

“The courage, boldness and the faith expressed by Zelophehad’s daughters paid off, and not only for them, but it was also instrumental to solving a major land crisis among the Israelites tribes.

“Therefore, as the world joins hand in celebrating the beauty, integrity and necessity of the girl child in global development, I ask that you exercise faith and courage and speak up where you have access and influence, and even where you don’t,” he urged.

Similarly, Founder and Executive Director, Innovative Strategy for Human Development (ISHD), Olutoyin Falade, canvassed for the abolition of demeaning of the girl child’s status in ways such as abortion, female genital mutilation, demeaning labour, prostitution, rape, early marriage and early pregnancy among others.
‎
She also urged that poverty be reduced at all levels of government, noting that “if families are okay economically, what would make them send their children to become house-helps in other peoples’ homes?”

Falade tasked government and public-spirited Nigerians, to take up the challenge of providing scholarship schemes that will open more access to the girl-child education in Nigeria. She advised that government and stakeholders in the education sector put an end to the practice, where an impregnated girl-child in secondary school is stopped from going to school, whereas the male counterpart, who impregnated her, is allowed to continue his education.

“During our university days, we had married women on campus, and they made good grades on graduation. So, why do we bar the girl-child, who get pregnant along the line during her post-primary education, from continuing her education,” she queried.

On his part, Lagos Zonal Commander, National Agency for Prohibition of Traffic In Persons and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP), Joseph Famakin, warned Nigerians against child trafficking. He said the agency is on the look out for erring offenders and will not fail to prosecute and jail them.

Famakin, who disclosed that since its establishment in 2003, NAPTIP has successfully prosecuted and jailed more than 200 offenders of human trafficking, warned that the agency would not compromise in executing its mandate in line with the dictates of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015.

The ex-Police investigator also said that the law prohibits people from using children under the age of 12 as domestic helps. He advised couples to be conscious of the number of children they reproduce.

“It’s an eye-sore to breed children that one can’t cater for. Why do you have to give birth to children that you will start distributing to other people as house helps at the age of 12 or below? It must be made clear to Nigerian parents that it’s never the responsibility of children aged 12 to 17 to cater for their parents,” he said.

Yinka Davies, the popular songstress also charged parents and guardians around the world to invest in today’s adolescent girls in order to have stronger and more secure citizens in the nearest future. She condemned girl child marriage and the use of Internet for terrorism, stating that these are some of the disadvantages of using the Internet. She advised parents and guardians to re-orientate the girl child on the use of social media, increase awareness for digital vices, create legislation for safety and protection of the Internet, as well as a drastic reduction of poverty rate.

“As parents, we must be vigilant of who they move with and what they are exposed to because the Internet is being used to perpetrate all sorts of evils such as rape and sexual abuse among others. As mothers, we should be friends to our daughters and always guide and supervise their activities. We must know their friends, classmates and all that is happening around them. We must show interest in the things that are of interest to our kids,” she said.

She pointed out that it is important for mothers to upgrade themselves and step up their game in order to be abreast of current trends and happenings around their families, especially their daughters.

Some of the major highlights of the event were music presentations, exhibition, voice pop sessions, presentations on the challenges of the child and how to ameliorate them in order to secure a bright future for the nation’s girl children. The event ended with a wake up call and a challenge to participants to go and affect their areas of influence in the society, as part of their contribution to nation building.