News
Nigeria Ranks 6th Worst In Global Child’s Wellbeing Survey
Nigeria has been ranked among the bottom 10 countries performing poorly in terms of children’s well-being, coming 6th worst performing country in the world, according to a recent report released, yesterday by a commission convened by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and The Lancet.
The ranking is based on factors, including child survival, health, education, nutrition, equity and income gaps.
The report titled – ‘A Future for the World’s Children?’, based its rankings on factors, including measures of child survival and well-being such as health, education, nutrition, equity and income gaps.
A report rated Nigeria 174 out of 180 countries, lagging behind Afghanistan, Sierra Leone and South Sudan.
The UNICEF Nigeria Representative, Claes Johansson, in a statement, yesterday, said that the solution to ensuring that Nigerian children have a future was to invest in them.
“This report demonstrates how far we still need to go in Nigeria to ensure children can live healthy lives in an environment where they can thrive. We know that investing in the future of our children, giving them an education and making sure they are healthy and receive the right nutrition, works to provide a better future for everyone”, he said.
But while the survey suggests that poorer countries need to do more to support their children’s ability to live healthier lives, it has blamed wealthier countries for burdening the poor with excessive carbon emissions, a situation, it reports can lead to devastating health consequences for children, and increase the risk of diseases like malaria and dengue, and malnutrition.
“More than two billion people live in countries where development is hampered by humanitarian crises, conflicts, and natural disasters, problems increasingly linked with climate change”.
“While some of the poorest countries have among the lowest CO2 emissions, many are exposed to the harshest impacts of a rapidly changing climate. Promoting better conditions today for children to survive and thrive nationally does not have to come at the cost of eroding children’s futures globally,” Johansson said.
In its call to action to protect children, the independent commission’s authors recommends that there is an urgent need to stop CO2 emissions to ensure children have a future on this planet. It also recommends that – there is need to place children and adolescents at the centre of efforts to achieve sustainable development; create new policies and investment in all sectors to work towards child health and rights; incorporate children’s voices into policy decisions; and tighten national regulation of harmful commercial marketing, supported by a new Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The report further added that while the poorest countries need to do more to support their children’s ability to live healthy lives, excessive carbon emissions – disproportionately from wealthier countries – threaten the future of all children. If global warming exceeds 4°C by the year 2100 in line with current projections, this would lead to devastating health consequences for children, due to rising ocean levels, heat waves, proliferation of diseases like malaria and dengue, and malnutrition.
The index shows that children in Norway, the Republic of Korea, and the Netherlands have the best chance at survival and well-being, while children in Central African Republic, Chad, Somalia, Niger and Mali face the worst odds.
“More than two billion people live in countries where development is hampered by humanitarian crises, conflicts, and natural disasters, problems increasingly linked with climate change,” Co-Chair of the commission and Minister Awa Coll-Seck from Senegal, said.
The Editor-in-Chief of The Lancet family of journals, Dr. Richard Horton, said: “The opportunity is great. The evidence is available. The tools are at hand. From heads-of-state to local government, from UN leaders to children themselves, this commission calls for the birth of a new era for child and adolescent health. It will take courage and commitment to deliver. It is the supreme test of our generation.
“From the climate crisis to obesity and harmful commercial marketing, children around the world have to contend with threats that were unimaginable just a few generations ago,” UNICEF Executive Director, Henrietta Fore, said.
“It is time for a rethink on child health, one which places children at the top of every government’s development agenda and puts their well-being above all considerations.
“This report shows that the world’s decision makers are, too often, failing today’s children and youth: failing to protect their health, failing to protect their rights, and failing to protect their planet”.
The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said: “This must be a wakeup call for countries to invest in child health and development, ensure their voices are heard, protect their rights, and build a future that is fit for children.”
However, Nigeria may not be alone in the negligence of its children as the report reveals that no single country in the world adequately protects the health, environment and the future of its young.
According to experts, these revelations indicate that the health and future of children worldwide was under immediate threat from ecological degradation, climate change and exploitative marketing as well as violence emanating from insurgency.
Expectedly, Nigeria is among this two billion under threat as more than half of its children bear the brunt of insurgency, terrorism and crime.
To ensure children are at the centre of efforts to achieve sustainable development, world bodies like the WHO and UNICEF say decision-makers must invest in protecting the rights of children.
Nigerians were among more than 140 residents injured after Iran launched multiple ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles at the United Arab Emirates, at the weekend.
This raised fresh fears for thousands of Nigerians living and working in the Gulf nation.
The UAE Ministry of Defence disclosed last Saturday that its air defence systems intercepted several missiles and drones fired from Iran, describing the attack as a major escalation in the ongoing regional tensions.
In a statement posted on its official X handle, the ministry said its air defence units engaged nine ballistic missiles and 33 drones during the latest assault on March 14.
It added that the attacks left six people dead and 141 others injured, including foreign nationals.
“The UAE air defence systems on March 14 engaged nine ballistic missiles and 33 UAVs launched from Iran,” the ministry stated.
“Since the onset of this blatant Iranian aggression, UAE air defences have engaged 294 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles, and 1,600 UAVs launched from Iran,” UAE added.
According to the ministry, those killed in the attacks included citizens of the UAE as well as foreign nationals from Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.
“Although the authorities did not specify the exact locations where the casualties occurred, the ministry said the injured victims were from several countries, including Nigeria.
Others affected include residents from Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Pakistan, Iran, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
The list also included Azerbaijan, Yemen, Uganda, Eritrea, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Bahrain, Comoros, Türkiye, Iraq, Nepal, Oman, Jordan, Palestine, Ghana, Indonesia and Sweden.
The Tide reports that this development has sparked concern among Nigerian communities in the UAE, where thousands of citizens live and work in sectors such as construction, hospitality, logistics and trade.
Data from Nigeria’s diaspora commission shows that the UAE remains one of the largest destinations for Nigerian migrants in the Middle East, particularly in the emirates of Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.
The Nigerian government had in recent years raised concerns over the safety and welfare of its citizens in the country following diplomatic tensions and visa restrictions affecting Nigerians.
Saturday’s attacks have now heightened anxieties within the diaspora community, especially as the Gulf region faces growing military confrontations.
In its statement, the UAE Ministry of Defence said the country remained fully prepared to confront any threats to its security.
“The Ministry of Defence remains fully prepared and ready to deal with any threats and will firmly confront any attempts to undermine state security in a manner that ensures the protection of its sovereignty, security and stability, and safeguards its national interests and capabilities,” the ministry said.
In a separate update, the ministry noted that its defence systems were still actively intercepting missiles and drones.
“UAE air defences are dealing with Iranian ballistic and cruise missiles and drones,” it said.
Regional media reports indicate that the attacks form part of a wider escalation of hostilities between Iran and Western-backed forces in the Middle East.
According to Al Jazeera, Iran has continued sustained missile and drone strikes across the Gulf despite protests from neighbouring states.
The strikes were said to be in retaliation for military operations launched by the United States and Israel against Iranian positions in the region.
Tehran targeted several Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, late on Friday and into Saturday.
The attacks also caused infrastructural damage in parts of the UAE.
Meanwhile, Iran’s elite military wing, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, warned that US interests in the UAE would remain legitimate targets.
Iranian state media reported that the group issued the warning after US forces attacked Iranian-controlled islands.
The IRGC specifically mentioned ports, docks and military installations linked to the United States as potential targets.
It also urged residents in the UAE to evacuate areas around ports and military facilities to avoid civilian casualties.
Security analysts say the growing exchange of threats and strike across the Gulf could destabilise the region’s economic and aviation activities if the conflict escalates further.
Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has yet to issue an official statement on the incident as of the time of filing this report.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has charged the five new commissioners sworn-in last Wednesday to put in their best for the development of the State.
Fubara gave the charge during the swearing-in of the commissioners at the Executive Council Chambers of the Government House, Port Harcourt, last Wednesday.
This followed the successful screening of the five commissioners by the Rivers State House of Assembly, last Tuesday.
The five commissioners are Tonye Bellgam, Prof. Temple Nwofor, Dr. Peters Nwagor, Mr. Lekue Kenneth, and Sir Amairigha Edward Hart.
The Tide reports that the governor had sent nine commissioner-nominees to the Assembly for screening, but the Assembly confirmed only five nominees and rejected the nomination of four over various allegations.
Those rejected by the Assembly are Prof. Dantonye Alasia, Mrs. Charity Demua, Mr. Tamuno Williams, and Otonye Amachree.
The governor congratulated the new commissioners on their appointment, noting that their thorough screening by the Rivers State House of Assembly was a proof of their capabilities.
He urged them to deploy their wealth of experience in various fields and put the State on a fast lane of development.
“Ordinarily, I am supposed to charge you on your responsibilities and how to operate. But that has been taken care of by the screening at the Assembly.
“I believe that going through one of the most rigorous screenings, it is enough to say that for those of you who succeeded, you are fit and ready to deliver to our dear State.
“So there is no further charge. The screening was the charge, so I wish you the best as I don’t expect anything less than the best from you,” Fubara said.
The Nigerian Navy has intensified its crackdown on crude oil theft and illegal bunkering, destroying a reactivated illegal refinery site in Rivers State and intercepting suspected stolen petroleum products in Calabar, Cross River State.
The Director of Naval Information, Capt Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement released in Abuja, yesterday.
Folorunsho said personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship SOROH, operating under Operation DELTA SENTINEL, destroyed a reactivated illegal refinery site at Okolomade Community in Abua-Odual Local Government Area of Rivers State.
He said the action followed credible intelligence that a previously dismantled illegal refining site had resumed operations.
According to him, an Anti–Crude Oil Theft team deployed to the location discovered that the dismantled refining oven had been reconstructed.
“Further exploitation of the area led to the discovery of additional refining equipment and storage facilities containing about 3,000 litres of product suspected to be illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO),” he said.
Folorunsho added that the illegal refining infrastructure, including ovens, storage tanks, hoses, connected pipes and newly acquired metal components used for illegal refining, was destroyed in line with operational procedures.
He said personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship Victory, in another operation, intercepted about 3,950 litres of suspected stolen petroleum products at the Nigerian Ports Authority area in Calabar, Cross River State.
He said the interception was based on credible intelligence on suspected siphoning of petroleum products from vessels berthed at the port.
The naval patrol team, according to him, swiftly deployed to the area and traced the illegally siphoned products to a trailer park within the port facility.
“On sighting the naval patrol team, the suspected perpetrators fled the scene, after which the area was cordoned off and the illegally siphoned products secured,” he said.
Folorunsho said further inspection led to the recovery of about 3,950 litres of Automotive Gas Oil stored in drums and jerrycans, which had been evacuated to the naval base for further necessary action in line with extant regulations.
He noted that the successes aligned with the directive of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Adm. Idi Abbas, to intensify operations against crude oil theft and other maritime crimes across Nigeria’s maritime domain.
Folorunsho reiterated the Navy’s commitment to sustaining the operational tempo of Operation DELTA SENTINEL through intensified surveillance, patrols and intelligence-driven operations aimed at combating crude oil theft, illegal bunkering and other forms of economic sabotage.
-
News16 hours agoNavy Destroys Illegal Refinery In Rivers, Intercepts Stolen Fuel In C’ River
-
News16 hours agoYou’re The Backbone Of Our Society, Fubara Salutes Mothers On Mothering Sunday
-
Rivers12 hours agoCounty Grammar School Old Boys Elect New Executive
-
Environment13 hours agoIllegal Buildings On Embassies’ Land Will Be Demolished – Wike
-
News16 hours agoODU PLEDGES PARTNERSHIP WITH WACCIMA TO ADVANCE WOMEN’S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT
-
Business14 hours agoWema Bank Admits 10 Startups into Hackaholics 2026
-
News16 hours agoRSNC To Partner Wikimedia In Documenting N’Delta
-
News16 hours agoProbe ?5.9bn NNPC Rebranding Cost, SERAP Urges Tinubu