The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Bauchi Field Office is partnering with broadcast stations to give more airtime for children to voice out their special needs and demands.
Speaking on the new approach, a communication working partner with UNICEF Bauchi Field Office, who is coordinating the implementation, Mallam Umar Muhammad, said that as long as all the media stations have their functional children desks, UNICEF is keying into existing programmes by enhancing the capacity of producers to bring in creativity in their works so that there will be more visibility of children and reportage on key issues affecting kids.
“Under this approach, child-participatory radio and TV presentations are given priority to enable children to air their views in their own languages and perceptions for the world to understand and act.
“Through the initiative, children are now allowed to anchor segments of programmes, live and recorded, covering key areas of their development concerns such as nutrition, health, security, education, rights’ protection, among others,” he said.
Muhammad stressed that, when properly reported, those at the helm of affairs like policymakers would be tasked to also have a paradigm shift in areas of funding children development and welfare issues.
He also said that global attention, especially in the implementation of the SDGs, is shifted towards collaborative efforts by all the stakeholders as a workable strategy in pushing for better outcomes on the outlined and targeted goals.
“The media, therefore, has a role to play in the areas of information dissemination, sensitisation of the society and mobilisation for positive action,” he added.
The coordinator charged media outfits to see the partnership as a call to duty to offer their platforms for the survival and development of children while on her part, UNICEF promises to come in from time to time with little support to keep the flag flying in the best interest of children.
