The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has urged journalists in Gombe, Bauchi and Plateau states to intensify advocacy for increased investment in children by scrutinising government budgets, fund releases and expenditure on child-focused programmes.
The UNICEF Chief of Field Office, Bauchi, Dr Nuzhat Rafiq, made the call on Monday at a one-day media dialogue on public financing for children organised for journalists from the three states in Bauchi.
The dialogue was organised by the Bauchi State Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning in collaboration with UNICEF Bauchi Field Office, with journalists from the three states participating.
Rafiq, represented by UNICEF Education Specialist, Abdulrahman Ibrahim Ado, said the media had a critical role in influencing government policies and ensuring that the welfare of children and women received adequate attention.
She urged journalists to hold political actors accountable ahead of the 2027 elections by demanding clear commitments on issues affecting vulnerable groups, including out-of-school children, malnutrition, inadequate healthcare and poor access to water, sanitation and hygiene.
Also speaking, UNICEF Social Policy Specialist, Yusuf Auta, called for child-centred planning from conception, stressing that mothers and newborns deserved safe and conducive healthcare facilities.
Auta noted that children aged zero to 18 constitute more than 51 per cent of the population, yet budgetary priorities often favour adults.
He therefore urged journalists to go beyond reporting allocations by tracking how much is actually released and spent, and whether such expenditure produces tangible improvements in children’s lives.
