AT a time when most states offer only lip service to child protection statutes, Delta State has taken a commendable leap forward by recognising the need to modernise an outdated law. Governor Sheriff Oborevwori deserves praises for signing the Child Rights Bill (Amended) 2024 into law, a decisive move that signals a genuine commitment to the welfare of children.
The original Delta State Child Rights Law of 2008 was progressive for its time, but over the years, it had lost its relevance. As society evolved and new threats to children emerged, the law’s provisions began to fall short, offering little shield against modern forms of abuse and exploitation.
This 2024 amendment, therefore, arrives as a breath of fresh legal air. It plugs critical loopholes that previously hindered the prosecution of child abusers and strengthens the mechanisms for protecting victims. It signals a shift from passive legislation to proactive enforcement.
One of the standout features is the law’s firmer approach to streamlining adoption. It introduces an Adoption Service Department under the state Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, and Social Development to tackle the persistent challenges faced by prospective adoptive parents.
This amendment also takes a bold stance on economic abuse, an age-old menace that has evolved into more subtle and damaging forms. By clearly defining a child as any person under the age of 18, the law reaffirms that children deserve full, uncompromised protection. Access to food, shelter, education, healthcare, love, and security should never be optional, they are not privileges, but rights.
Yet, the reality remains grim. Section 28 of the Child Rights Act (2003) prohibits exploitative labour, including hazardous work or domestic service outside the family. Still, across Nigeria, children continue to hawk wares in traffic, skip school, or work under dangerous conditions. These are criminal acts under the law, yet offenders often walk away with mere warnings or community service, a gross miscarriage of justice.
This is why the amended law matters. It aims to establish a stronger legal framework to curb child abuse, exploitation, and neglect.
In a strategic shift, oversight of the law has moved from the Ministry of Education to the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development Services. This change is more than administrative, it aligns the law’s implementation with a ministry whose mandate directly covers child welfare. The involvement of the Heads of Personnel Management of the Delta State Child Rights Implementation Committee across all local government areas further strengthens this structural support.
But let it be said plainly: the responsibility does not lie with the government alone. Parents and guardians must be held to account. Too often, their ignorance or negligence fuels the very violations the law seeks to prevent. To uphold the law is to accept that children are not to be commodified, exploited, or ignored. They are individuals with rights and dignity.
However, even the most finely written law is meaningless without implementation and vigilance. Justice must be served swiftly and visibly. Citizens must report violations, whether to the State Ministry of Women Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, or local Child Rights Committees. Silence is complicity.
Legal professionals must also rise above profit motives. Lawyers have a moral obligation to draw the line. Not every client deserves defence, especially not those who violate the innocence of children. Justice must prioritise protection, not loopholes.
This effort to protect Nigeria’s children must also involve traditional rulers, religious leaders, civil society groups, and institutions, both public and private. Many of today’s societal problems, from drug abuse to cultism, are rooted in childhood neglect. A nation that fails to protect its children mortgages its future.
The time for complacency is over. The Delta State government has set the standard. It is now up to the rest of Nigeria to follow suit. Child protection must become a national priority, not just on paper, but in practice.
