Child right Protection: C’River Govt, UNICAL, train auxiliary Social Workers in Calabar 

From Ene Asuquo, Calabar 

The Cross River State Government in collaboration with the department of social works, University of Calabar with support from UNICEF flagged off the training of auxiliary Social Workers in Calabar, the State capital yesterday 

Flagging off the training, the state commissioner for social welfare and community development, Bishop Margaret Ene-Ita in her address said the flag-off was a bold step in their commitment to strengthen social welfare structures and ensure that every child in the State is protected. cared for, and given the opportunity to thrive.

She said the government is aware of the limited number of qualified social workers in Cross River State, compared to the vast population, which has contributed to a gap in the provision of timely and quality care for vulnerable children. 

The Honourable maintained that to address this challenge, the Government of Cross River State with support from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF),!  initiated a robust programme to strengthen community-based child protection structures which are to be supported by auxiliary social workforce to deliver a defined package of child protection services at both the household and community levels.

Ene-Ita disclosed that through the collaborative efforts of the Ministry of Social Welfare and Community Development, the Centre for Citizens’ Rights & Office of the Public Defender, and other partners with the invaluable support of UNICEF,  have successfully mobilized and strengthened existing community-based structures in 29 communities in Calabar Municipality. 

In her words; “As we flag off this next phase which is the training of Auxiliary Social Workers, I am confident that it will further strengthen the social service workforce at the community level”.

“It will enable them to effectively coordinate and support child protection activities, ensuring that every case of abuse, neglect, or exploitation is promptly addressed and that no child is left unprotected in Cross River State”

In her remarks, the representative of UNICEF, Mrs Juliet Chiluwe said, 

UNICEF remain committed to the partnership with cross river state,  to ensure that every child’s right is attained”.

The UNICEF chief then Commended the efforts of the State government for their commitment to ensure that the rights of children are attained. And for the fact that the state is  able to have auxiliary social workers in the communities is a very big achievement, she said 

“And I would like to commend the academia for showing interest and commitment”.

She maintained that, “the children have the right to education, right to survive and right to be protected”.

“our role is to ensure that these children are protected, their voices are heard, and before God and man, they are counted.”

The representative of the vice Chancellor of the University of Calabar, Esther Uzoh of the Department of social works in her address said “we have to be responsible to our children, in as much as we are trying to raise and help social workers”. 

She said there are social workers graduates from the University of  Calabar whom they could engage  to assist the community people, because they need to work together, she stressed.

In her remarks, the representative of the Centre for Citizens Rights, Office of the Public Defender. Florence Agbiji told those that have been trained and deployed to work in their various communities, that they were now servants in their own communities, and would be held responsible for any abuse of any child

She told the trainees that they were chosen by their Communities because of the confidence they have in them, for that reason much were expected from them and they must be ready for the tasks ahead 

“We must be ready to run, We must be ready to do what is the needful. We must be ready to protect our children”, she stated