The Child Protection Network Nigeria has disclosed that it received no less than 36 cases of child abuse within a few months, which includes physical abuse, neglect, child trafficking, sexual abuse and illegal adoption.
The National Coordinator of the organisation, Olakunle Sanni, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja at a press briefing on the state of the Nigerian child, where he called for urgent national action to strengthen child protection and safeguard vulnerable children.
Sanni said the cases received by the Child Protection Network Centre reflected the broader challenges confronting children across the country, including sexual abuse, trafficking, abduction, physical violence, neglect, poverty, homelessness, hunger, exclusion from education and inadequate healthcare.
He said although the organisation acknowledged interventions by the Federal, state and local governments in education, healthcare, school feeding, social protection, child protection, anti-trafficking operations and school safety, millions of children remained exposed to serious risks.
“These challenges are interconnected and require a coordinated national response,” he said.
