Children in the Gushegu Municipality have made a passionate appeal to parents and other duty-bearers to give priority to their educational and healthcare needs.
Speaking on behalf of the children at this year’s Child-Friendly Accountability Mechanism (CFAM) forum held at Nayugu in the municipality in the Northern Region, Master Fuseini Mohammed, a form three Student of Kpatinga E/A JHS, expressed concern about the high rate of child abuse cases in the municipality and appealed to parents and other stakeholders to ensure equal opportunities for children to reach their full potential.
The CFAM, which was formed a decade ago by Children Believe, an international child-centred NGO, was established to fight against child abuse in schools and at home and offers children the opportunity to meet with stakeholders and duty-bearers on issues affecting their welfare.
This year’s CFAM forum was organised by Markaz-Al-Bishara under the Gushegu Area Child Development Programme with funding support from Children Believe and was themed “Child Protection Issues in the Gushegu Municipality.”
Mr Samuel Abdul Rahaman, the Programme Officer in charge of Sponsorship and Child Protection at Children Believe, called on traditional authorities, stakeholders, parents and duty-bearers to come up with workable strategies and by-laws to protect children against abuse in the area.
Mr Mohammed Adam, who represented Gushegu Municipal Coordinating Director, assured the children of the Assembly’s commitment to working with relevant organizations such as the Department of Social Welfare and Community Development, Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, among others, to protect children as well as promote the needed development of the area.
Mr Mohammed Ahamed Tijani, Gushegu Municipal Director of Education, urged traditional authorities, parents and stakeholders to ensure that all children of school-going age in their communities were enrolled in school, as education was the key to unlocking their potential and shaping their future.
The children’s appeal for the prioritization of their welfare comes on the back of several reports of child abuse cases in the Gushegu Municipality, with some of these cases leading to the untimely death of children.
