Financing Children Programmes is Important to Safeguarding their Future – UNICEF Urges Government
By ALEX UANGBAOJE, Abuja
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has urged Governments in Africa to commit their resources in financing children programmes as part of efforts to safeguard their future.
UNICEF Country Representative in Nigeria Mr Mohammed Malick-Fall, said this in an appeal in Abuja, at the closing of a five day workshop on Public Finance for Children in Africa, organised for staff of UNICEF Regional offices in Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.
According to Malick-Fall, “public financing for children is important because development money is just the seed money compare to the needs in Africa.
“It is important for federal and state governments to release the funding that we need to meet the Social Development Goal (SDG).”
Also speaking, Mr Gustave Nebie, UNICEF Regional Adviser, Social Policy, West and Central African Region (WCARO),described the workshop as timely.
“I think it was a good workshop, because what is important here is diversification of partnership.
“Usually, this kind of workshop is held for people in the social policy section only but fortunately, in Nigeria the senior management has decide to bring everybody along.
“The idea is due to the fact that public finance involves all sections of the organisation,” Nebie said.
He said participants at the workshop had been equip with various skills to work towards enhancing the wellbeing of children.
“For me it was a very successful meeting and I was really happy to be part of it.
“It will kick start a process in which we have to work together in order to be able to move the public finance agenda.
“As we all know, we are working to achieve results for children and we need to make sure that we get more resources for the benefit of the children,”Nebie said.
