Buhari Vows to Strengthen Actions to Protect Children from Violence in Children’s Day Message

President Muhammadu Buhari has reiterated that his administration would continue to sustain and strengthen ongoing actions to protect children from violence, child-labour, child-trafficking, forced marriages and other related offences.

The president, who stated this in Abuja on Thursday, in his 2016 Children’s Day message, said the well-being of Nigerian children remained a top priority on his administration’s agenda for national development.

“We have demonstrated our strong commitment in this regard with the allocation of N12.6 billion in the 2016 budget for vaccines and programmes to prevent childhood killer diseases such as polio, measles and yellow fever.

Other measures in the 2016 budget, such as the school feeding programme for children at a cost of N93.1 billion, will ensure that more children go to school and enjoy the fun of learning and growing together with their peers,” he said.

The president reassured the children and youth that his administration would remain fully committed to fulfilling its promise of a better nation for all Nigerians.

He noted with delight that on this year’s Children’s Day, Nigerians would celebrate with one of the abducted Chibok girls, Amina Ali Nkeki, freed from the clutches of Boko Haram.

“I assure all Nigerians and friends of the country, once again, that my administration will not rest on its oars until the ungodly terrorist sect is totally eliminated from our country.

As peace gradually returns to the insurgency-ravaged North-Eastern states, the Federal Government will continue to work diligently to ensure the rapid and full reintegration and rehabilitation of all internally displaced persons, including orphaned children in the region,” he said.

He, however, urged the children and youth “to imbibe and exhibit in greater measure, the virtues of hard work, diligence, discipline, honesty, prudence, selflessness and patriotism which are essential for the actualisation of our vision of a truly great nation.

“The world now looks up to our dear nation, Nigeria as an exemplary model of democratic ideals after the smooth transition that brought our administration to power.

You, our children and youth have a very significant role to play in ensuring that our democratic institutions of governance are continuously nurtured, improved and strengthened to underpin national development and prosperity,” Buhari added.

The president assured that the Federal Government would continue to do its best to prepare and equip Nigerian children to harness their potentials.

President Buhari wished all Nigerians a “Happy Children’s Day celebration”.