180m Children To live In Extreme Poverty —UNICEF

A new report by UNICEF has revealed that, about 180 million children across the globe are likely to live in extreme poverty and harsh conditions, be out of school and suffer violent deaths than their parents did.

According to the report, despite efforts to protect child rights and to improve child welfare, millions of children in 37 countries still face unending challenges caused by no faults of theirs.

The analysis indicated, that “One out of 12 children has bleaker prospects than their parents.”

It is for this reason that UNICEF is partnership with the People’s Initiative Foundation (PIF) have commemorated the World Children’s Day with a call on children in Africa to fight for their rights by making their voice heard.

The African Dialogue

To ensure that Africa as a continent fights the impending doom, 10 youths from eight African countries last Monday, took centre stage to outline the challenges they face and to share their vision of what they want Africa’s future to look like.

The youths highlighted issues of Education, peace, elimination of hunger and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

Other issues raised were sanitation, child marriage, child neglect, food security and development.

According to the Co-founder of PIF, Mr Daniel Antwi, the various submissions made by these children would be streamlined and used to formulate policies and initiatives that are peculiar to Africa.

He said, “All the UNICEF officers across the continent are listening and making sure that when the talks are done, they will take pragmatic steps to really close the gap of the disadvantaged African child.”

“The Africa We Want”

In Ghana and beyond the children have called for an Africa whose future is not bleak and an African where children would have all their basic needs met.

According to 15-year-old Kwesi of the Alpha Beta Christian College, he wants an Africa where leaders are actively involved in the economy and are actively putting their country’s resources to proper use.

“I believe if they are able to put their greediness aside for one year and focus the resources on what has to be done, Africa would be a better place,” he said.

For Victoria who is a student of the Ghana Institute of Journalism, she desires an Africa where child neglect becomes a thing of the past.

Some other children are calling for an Africa that would present equal opportunities to children, an Africa that would create jobs for its young people, a disease free Africa and an Africa that is self-efficient to feed its own.

World Children’s Day

Children’s Day is an international celebration observed on November 20, every year, with an intention to bring nations together to promote child welfare.

In Ghana for the first time, children from other parts of the continent joined their Ghanaians counterparts to mark the day.

 

Source: Grace Ablewor Sogbey/ [email protected]