When Institutions Fail, Children Become Stateless: Pathways to Building a Nation Fit for Children

The events of last week were not surprising to me. They were many, but they were a clear demonstration of the siege laid on the Nigerian child.

In one week, the following reports indicted Nigeria and seem to suggest that the Nigerian child is, in effect, stateless:

• World Bank: Nigerian parents, particularly mothers, receive zero meaningful support from government in terms of social protection and related services.
• UNICEF: Over 1,200 children were recruited as child soldiers in the North East in 2024.
• Gombe State Government: 48 children were stolen and trafficked abroad.

Others:

• UNICEF/UNESCO: Over 18 million children are out of school, 10.2 million children of primary school age and 8.1 million of junior secondary school age.
• British Council: As of 2026, Nigeria ranks 191st globally in education quality, according to the World Population Review. In addition, Nigeria is at least two generations (about 60 years) behind in teaching the basics of education.
• IFRC: Nigeria is currently in a state of “nutrition emergency,” with malnutrition contributing to approximately 45% of all deaths among children under five.
• National Bureau of Statistics: Child vulnerability, over 67.5% of children in Nigeria are multidimensionally poor, reflecting the direct inheritance of their parents’ poverty; 63% (133 million people) live on less than $2.5 per day.

The foregoing crystallizes our long-held and consistently shared view that, by global standards, children are properly raised only when the four institutions created for their wellbeing are functional: the Family, the Community, the State, and the International Community. Anything short of that will not raise complete children.

It is also our view that there is no such thing as the Nigerian child, because nothing accrues to children born in Nigeria from the Nigerian State except pain and neglect. It is also my conclusion that children of Nigeria are citizens of their families, where parents who have the means provide what the State should provide, while those who do not have the means raise children who, in effect, become stateless.

This snapshot of the state of the Nigerian child depicts a country that has destroyed its own future. Mandela said children are the pivotal link between the present and the future.

The situation is dire, but our hope is not. Our hope is not dimmed in the least, not blind hope, but hope anchored on empirical and tested pathways.

Joining me for this conversation is a very dear brother; Dele Farotimi, a patriot of a nation in the throes of a painful birth labour; a retired attorney; and a social and political ideologue.

You are very cordially invited to join us via the details on the handbill and below

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🗓 Saturday, March 7th, 2026
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