Children in Nigeria are at risk of being left behind (social networking sites)
According to the most recent International Committee of the Red Cross numbers, 64,000 incidents of disappearance have been documented across Africa.
More than 25,000 individuals have gone missing in Nigeria alone, with approximately 14,000, or more than half of those missing, being children.
There are currently over 35 active armed conflicts in Africa; thousands of people, including children, cross borders, deserts, and the Mediterranean every year in quest of safety and a better life.
Such moves frequently involve major dangers, including the possibility of disappearance.
The number of documented cases of missing people is growing; however, the International Committee of the Red Cross warns that the true figure is significantly higher.
Nearly 14,000 registered youngsters are unaware of the full scale of this devastating and sometimes neglected humanitarian situation.
There are undoubtedly more children whose fate is unknown, according to Jan Bunzon, head of the ICRC team in Nigeria.
Children suffer hazards such as exploitation, assault, psychological anguish, and disappearance during displacement. Many of them also wind up alone, having no idea where their relatives are.
In Africa, the ICRC has documented over 5,200 cases of unaccompanied minors.
This is an issue of humanity and human dignity, said Patrick Youssef, the International Committee of the Red Cross’s regional director for Africa.
Putting in place the appropriate policies can save lives. He went on to say that it is a critical step in protecting migrants and relatives of the missing.
Between January and June, the ICRC and the Nigerian Red Cross Society assisted in the exchange of 1,250 Red Cross letters.
These communications conveyed family news, and 31 unaccompanied minor children were recovered, while 440 phone calls were made to families to preserve family touch.
Furthermore, 377 families obtained information about their loved ones’ location or fate, while 146 families of missing individuals received psychological, economic, legal, and administrative help through the Accompaniment Program for Families of Missing Persons.
The Red Cross has issued a warning about 14,000 missing children in Nigeria.
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