Universally, vulnerable children are described as people under the age of 18 and lack adequate care and protection. Compared to adults, all children are vulnerable by nature, but some are more vulnerable than others.
According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), vulnerability is viewed as "a high probability of a negative outcome" or an expected welfare loss above a socially accepted norm, which results from risky or uncertain events, and the lack of appropriate means to deal with them.
Although, the degree and time varies in each context and overtime, it leaves them at the risk of exposure to stressful situations.
Basically, child vulnerability is a downward spiral where each shock leads to new levels of vulnerability, and each new level opens up for a host of new risks. In other words, the probability of a child experiencing a negative outcome rises with each shock.
All vulnerable children have one thing in common: they have no reliable social safety network on hand to depend upon in order to adequately manage the risks, they are daily exposed to.
They include orphans, those abandoned by their parents; living in extreme poverty; living with a disability; affected by conflicts; abused by parents or guardians; malnourished due to extreme poverty; and those marginalized, stigmatized, or even discriminated against.
An estimated 13.2 million children between the ages of 6 and 14 are not in school – the largest out-of-school population in the world. Of the 13.2 million, fully 12.6 million (95 percent) are in Northern Nigeria. In Nigeria alone, there are 8.6 million orphaned children.
Orphans and vulnerable children are easily trafficked, prone to sexual assault, less likely to attend schools, stigmatized and excluded. The Boko Haram conflict has displaced nearly 2 million people, further deteriorating access to schooling, as 55 % of the internally displaced people (IDPs) are children.
In relation, there are children with disability who experience neglect due to taboos and traditional beliefs that surround them. Rehabilitation centers are not maintained and suffer infrastructural decay and under-funding
Of grave concern are children who live on the streets, in motor parks, market stalls, under bridges, or with families, and are involved in different forms of work without any clear pattern. They are more prone to illnesses, malnourishment, drug abuse, crime, accidents, arrest and harassment by law enforcement agents, and are also at risk of being trafficked.
More importantly, this represents a big crisis that can affect the safety, future and survival of the country, if not addressed really soon.
Since 2016, Access Bank has given 30 million naira to the United Nations Children’s Fund through the Access Bank, UNICEF and Fifth Chucker Polo Charity Shield Tournament, an event usually held in Kaduna State.
More recently, Herbert Wigwe, the chief executive officer of the Bank, gave a cheque of 10 million naira to the organization in order to improve the lives of children in the state. The donations are meant to improve school facilities, including the building of more computer classes and increasing the number of equipment, as well as enhancing the lives of pupils.
As part of its commitment to rebuilding the country’s future, the annual event is the climax to the high-profile Access Bank/UNICEF Charity Shield Polo tournament, which is in its tenth year and is aimed at reaching out to and highlighting the plight of vulnerable children, orphans and internationally displaced persons.
Since the UNICEF/ACCESS Bank initiative started, it has rebuilt two schools in Kaduna and kept more than 8,000 students in continuous education, while at the same time developing new school blocks and a computer literacy building all in a more secure and friendly school environment.
The communities surrounding the schools are being supported with boreholes for water, sewing and grinding machines to secure employment and stimulate economic and social development.
Based in Kaduna, it is the biggest charity polo tournament in Africa and stimulates support for the work of the UNICEF/Access Bank initiative across Africa. The Bank also donated an additional 10 million naira to UNICEF for its campaign against HIV/AIDS among Nigerian children.
Nigeria’s future depends on all of us playing a part towards such a common vision. Education in Northern Nigeria is currently in a fragile state, and the best opportunities lies in building sustainable systems that can nurture the region back to health, encourage learning and enterprise and support minds that can direct their passions and expertise towards reducing the wealth gap and poverty in the region.
Differential access to education is a driving factor behind the growing inequality in Nigeria. With such a high number of youth population, there is an extensive wealth of human and intellectual resources, which can drive the country’s economy into the 21st century. But to achieve that, there needs to be a systematic execution of projects that can build the minds to utilize the raw minerals and agricultural resources that abound in the nation.
With nearly 3 million conflict-affected children in need of education and humanitarian assistance, Access Bank has provided an example of how private organisations can form long-term partnerships to play a bigger role in the future of their societies by re-energizing national visions and growth.
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