…….Pleads for Government’s presence in FCT communities
ActionAid Nigeria, a social justice non-governmental organisation working to achieve a just, equitable, and sustainable world in which every person enjoys the right to a life, has given succour to Vine Heritage home, a safe home for children who were rescued from harmful traditional practices.
This took place on Saturday, 30th of November, 2024.
Speaking to journalists, Andrew Mamedu, the Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria said, “Actionaid and Gradiv are here today to visit our home, vines heritage home, as we have adopted this home, working with them in the past 5 years, so we are here to visit them, felicitate with them and see how we can support.”
He emphasized, that bringing an end the harmful practices, would take more than just the involvement of individuals, stating, that “it has to be systematic and sustained, so the government has to come onboard, which is the essence of a local government, to take up the responsibility through social welfare programs and respond continuously to the needs of the children who are also part of the society.”
He said, “We are currently working with the Red-Cross to have a sustained partnership to provide doctors periodically to check and give free medical support.
Addressing the root cause and the effort of Actionaid in the resolve, the Country Director, said, “the root cause includes things like health, lack of health facilities in this community kills some of the pregnant
women, and when the woman dies and the child survives they say the child is evil, so we are advocating to the government to set up health facilities.
“We are also engaging with the communities, mobilizing them and enlightening them about the rights of the children, that they are not evil and thankfully some of the communities have stopped, with some coming to take back their children, which is an improvement.
“But we are hoping that the new intake stops and then we would know that we are fully there and that the communities are now responding to what we are talking about and that they also know the rights of the children and respect it.
Earlier, Stephen olushola, the founder of the Vine Heritage Home said, “We have a collaboration and partnership with Actionaid, we got a sponsorship from EU but ActionAid Nigeria had to become our partners to run a program mobilizing action towards abolition of infanticide, that was from 2019 to 6 October 2022 and the idea behind that, is to engage the conmunities where children are been killed to have a change of mind.
“The amazing thing that happened after the program is that some of the parents whose children have been rescued and are living here, started comig to ask questions because we engaged them, that can we see our children and some started to request for them. And so far, 30 children have ben reunited with their family.”
Speaking on some of the challenges faced, Mr Stephen said, “some of the children come in as infants, and as premature with no place in the incubator, so a lot of money is spent on their health and sometimes the community gives you a child that has already been poisoned but won’t tell you, so for the first 1 and half year of the children are usually very turbulent, and we are not given medication for free so that is a major challenge.”
He therefore called on the Federal government to go back to the intervention program that was started in 2015 during the administration of Bala Akinjide Jumoke Akinjide regime as FCT Minister.
“He started an intervention committee to go to the communities where the children are been killed to engage them in which the National Orientation Agency and other agencies where involved.”
“The intervention at that time helped as many of the communities stopped the killing of children.
“I believe that if that is sustained it will go a long way to ensure that the practice is not only stopped but people eventually embrace the fact that their children should be returned to them, as well as in other parts of the county where such practices are still going on.
Speaking, the Managing Director of Gradiv Travels and Tours, ifeoma funaya said that this was not her first time coming to the home and that there would definitely be more.
