Flooding in Nigeria has resulted in displacement of 650,000 children over course of 7 years- UNICEF

With almost 650,000 children relocated due to flooding, Nigeria is now the second most susceptible country in the world for children’s exposure to climate change.

Children were alarmingly uprooted by floods between 2016 and 2023.

This was stated in a news release sent to media by UNICEF on Monday, as Nigeria joined the rest of the world in commemorating World Children’s Day (WCD), which is observed on November 20 every year, in 2023.

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The national celebration of child rights and awareness of climate change are the main themes this year.

Over 110 million Nigerian children, according to UNICEF, are in danger as a result of having to deal with the harsh reality of rising temperatures, flooding, droughts, and strong storms.

According to Dr. Salisu Dahiru, Director General of the National Council on Climate Change, “Nigeria, being one of the nations most exposed to the negative effects of climate change, needs to respond to climate change quickly and comprehensively, taking into account the needs of vulnerable people, including women and children, at the decision-making level, as well as in the implementation of the National Climate Change Action Plan.”

“Our children, who are the most impacted by climate change, need this event as a vital forum to share their stories and concerns. Their opinions are crucial in helping to define our group’s course for a robust and sustainable future. The UNICEF Representative in Nigeria, Cristian Munduate, stated.

“Our children, who are the most impacted by climate change, need this event as a vital forum to share their stories and concerns. Their opinions are crucial in helping to define our group’s course for a robust and sustainable future. As stated by UNICEF Representative in Nigeria, Cristian Munduate

To honour the 2023 World Children’s Day, stakeholders in the education and environmental sectors, media practitioners, and pertinent organisations gathered on Monday at the Evolution hotel in Gombe to launch the Climate Landscape Analysis for Children (CLAC) in Nigeria.

In conjunction with a nationwide celebration of child rights and climate change awareness in Abuja, Nigeria, UNICEF Bauchi Field Office streamed the launch live from Gombe state.

In addition to outlining the main hazards that climate change poses to children, the event gave a general outline of the multisectoral climate mitigation and adaptation initiatives that UNICEF plans to carry out in Nigeria between 2023 and 2027.

The Gombe Commissioner for Education, Professor Aishatu Umar Maigari, the Project Coordinator of Agro-Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscape (ACReSAL), Ambassador Sani Adamu Jauro, and Dr. Clement Adams, the Officer-in-Charge of UNICEF, Bauchi Field Office, were present at the event.

Veteran journalists Farida Muhammad Dunemia, Alhaji Usman Shehu, Alhaji Aliyu Ardo, and other members of the Pathway to Peace DW Academia were among the attendees during the Gombe launch.

Following the announcement, UNICEF, in partnership with the Gombe State Ministry of Education, ACReSAL, and Pathway to Peace DW Academia, hosted an inter-school quiz tournament on climate change.

The Commissioner complimented UNICEF for launching CLAC and for coming up with the idea of an inter-school competition on climate change, and he declared the competition open. He charged the children to view the inter-school quiz competition as a means of learning about climate change.

In order to leave a lasting legacy, Maigari urged the continuation of CLAC and other child interventions.

In the interschool tournament, Government Girls Mega College, Gombe, took first place; Government Day Secondary School, Gandu, and Government Day Secondary School, Gombe, placed second and third, respectively.