Abuja, 1 October 2022 (TDI): The Minister of Foreign Affairs for Nigeria, Geoffrey Onyeama, received Credentials of Cristian Lorena Munduate Garcia, the newly designated UNICEF Representative to Nigeria, on 30th September in Abuja.
Signing of Agreement
The Foreign Minister of Nigeria, the United Nations system in Nigeria, and UNICEF signed the agreement between the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, United Nations Systems in Nigeria, and the UNICEF Country Office in Nigeria on 30 September.
The agreement was on the Handover Protocol for children encountered in the course of armed conflict in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin Region.
According to UNICEF, the Handover Protocol is a pragmatic tool to eliminate or reduce the detention of children encountered by military and security forces during armed conflict.
This will also support the resilience and social cohesion of the children, families, and communities through child protection, education, psychosocial support, and livelihood initiatives, and life skills, vocational, and skills development.
The Government of Nigeria and UNICEF are continuously collaborating to make sure that children who are allegedly connected to armed groups receive appropriate and specialized social and economic reintegration assistance.
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The Government of Nigeria, the United Nations System in Nigeria, and UNICEF will appoint focal points to oversee the implementation of the protocol and develop a detailed operation plan to guide the implementation of the protocol under the agreement.
The UNICEF Representative to Nigeria, Cristian Lorena Munduate Garcia, said “Today marks a historic moment for children who are victims of serious rights violations in north-east Nigeria.”
“This positive undertaking in signing the Handover Protocol represents a significant milestone and demonstrates the Government of Nigeria’s commitment to upholding its obligations to establish and implement the minimum safeguards to prevent the involvement of children in armed conflict.” She added.
