LEGAL PROTECTION OF CHILDREN IN NIGERIA: EXAMINING THE EXTANT LAWS AND POLICIES

Abstract

Children are the world’s most valuable resources and its best hope for the future.2 They
therefore deserve special protection and care to enable them reach their full potential. The laws
protecting children in Nigeria set forth favorable conditions for the Nigerian child, and they aim
to give children the best possible existence. The Child Rights Act being the hallmark for the
protection and care of children in Nigeria is inextricably linked to the standard of care and
protection accorded to children worldwide as it is a domestication of the United Nations
Conventions on the Rights of a Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the
Child, applicable to other countries internationally and regionally. The question however which
needs to be answered is how much these laws have affected Children’s lives in order to change
the story of the typical Nigerian child, whose life has never before been assured of a daily meal
or decent household. This work discusses the laws and policies in place to protect the Nigerian
Child. It uses the doctrinal methodology employing the use of Conventions, statutes, case laws,
journal articles, internet sources as well as reports of various authors. In addition, it uses
analysis as tools to assess the efficacy of these laws and the challenges militating against their
ability to effectively protect children.