Thank God, it is Friday. I am sure we are warming up for the first weekend in year 2013. I see a very promising year in the work He has by His mercies committed into our hands to bring to the very front burner of the conscience and consciousness of private and public institutions.  I am sure people will be fully back to the workplace on Monday. As I promised I will continue my series, 12 Attributes of a Child-Friendly Workplace, which I was divinely instructed to suspect during the Christmas and New Year season.

I am here today to share with you the 60^th Human and Social threat to child protection in Africa from my work, the  ‘CHILD PROTECTION IN AFRICA…62 Human and Social Threats YOU must KNOW, PREVENT & AVOID IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILD:’ The Non-Existence Social Support Services for Child Development: This speaks about the states of affairs in black Africa, where we bring children to this world without credible and effective social support system, which provide services like primary health care, quality education, welfare services and sundry. It is sad to not that it is impossible for a child to discover who he is not to talk discovering and attaining his God-given potentials without working and dependable social support system, which supports the family and the child in enjoying healthy development.

There are 133 million births each year. 29.2 million of the 133 million are born in Africa. The question is what is the plan for these children by the parents and society?

In recent study by, the Economist Intelligence Unit, Nigeria has been identified as the worst place to be born in 2013.  The report reads inter alia ‘among the 80 countries covered, Nigeria comes last.’ It may interest you to know how the Economist Intelligence Unit arrived at its conclusion. Time Magazine summed it up thus, ‘using a set of parameters ranging from the number of seats in parliament held by women, to life expectancy, divorce rates and average rainfall, the Economist Intelligence Unit released its yearly ranking of countries that offer the best opportunities for life, liberty and pursuit of happiness for children born in the coming year.’  The Time Magazine concludes, ‘among the 80 countries surveyed, Nigeria ranked last. Riven by poverty, corruption and sectarian violence, “it is the worst place for a baby to enter the world in 2013,” the study said.’

UNICEF in a report attested to the non-availability of Social Support Services for Child Development thus as follows: ‘Over the last decade, Nigeria’s exponential growth in population has put immense pressure on the country’s resources and on already overstretched public services and infrastructure. With children under 15 years of age accounting for about 45 per cent of the country’s population, the burden on education and other sectors has become overwhelming. Forty per cent of Nigerian children aged 6-11 do not attend any primary school with the Northern region recording the lowest school attendance rate in the country, particularly for girls. Despite a significant increase in net enrolment rates in recent years, it is estimated that about 4.7 million children of primary school age are still not in school. The report concluded as follows, ‘majority of primary schools, especially in rural areas, lack water, electricity and toilet facilities. For example, on average, there is only one toilet for 600 pupils in the primary school syste

To underscore the impact of where a child is born on his progress or otherwise in life, Laza Kekic: director, country forecasting services, Economist Intelligence Unit said, ‘Warren Buffett, probably the world’s most successful investor, has said that anything good that happened to him could be traced back to the fact that he was born in the right country, the United States, at the right time.’

One major problem why the African child does not have access social support service is lack of planning. Effective planning, among other things, answers to the planner having the clear and total picture of the object of planning table. Total and clear picture in planning for children speaks of statistics. The truth is that most African government and private Non-Governmental Organisations do not have statistics and thereby do not have a clear picture of matters affecting child protection.

The bottom line is that without a formidable social support system, which identifies the developmental needs of the African Child and makes adequate plans to meet them, I am afraid that the future of the African Child is seriously threatened.

I urge you friends, Think the Child, Think Today, Think the Future.  Do have an INSPIRED Day.