LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-Despite government policies and programmes designed to protect children from abuse, failures within law enforcement, the justice system and social support services continue to leave many young survivors without adequate protection, support or access to justice.
In Lagos, official figures show that more than 3,200 children were victims of emotional, sexual and physical abuse in 2024. They were among 9,279 survivors of domestic violence recorded in the state that year.
But the figures tell only part of the story.
For every case that reaches the attention of authorities, there are likely to be many more that remain hidden, particularly where the alleged perpetrator is a relative, family friend or another person trusted by the child.
“First, the number is more than that. Those are just the reported cases,” said Ololade Ajayi, founder of DOHS Cares Foundation and curator of femicide reports.
“Implementation of the law is the problem. Law enforcement frustrates half of the cases before they get to court.”
The gap between reported abuse and meaningful protection is not peculiar to Lagos.
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Nigeria’s 2024 Situation Analysis of Children and Adolescents, produced by the Federal Government with technical support from UNICEF, paints a broader picture of a child-protection system struggling to respond to the scale of violence against children.
UNICEF says six in 10 Nigerian children experience some form of violence, while fewer than five out of every 100 children who report violence receive any form of support.
The organisation attributes the low level of support partly to widespread understaffing and underfunding of social service agencies.
That means that for many children, reporting abuse may be only the beginning of another struggle, one that can involve police stations, hospitals, social workers, prosecutors and courts before they can obtain protection or justice.
Known Faces, Hidden Crimes
The Lagos data reveal another disturbing dimension of the problem.
In 84 per cent of reported child-abuse cases, the perpetrators were relatives or people known to the victims.
That reality makes reporting particularly difficult. A child may be dependent on, live with or emotionally attached to the very person accused of abusing them. Families may also fear stigma, financial hardship or the consequences of exposing a relative.
The problem is consistent with the wider pattern of violence against children documented by UNICEF, which describes violence as occurring in places where children should ordinarily feel safe, including homes, schools and communities.
Yet Lagos has introduced programmes intended to address both prevention and response.
Among them are the Kings and Queens Club and a free parental safeguarding course that reached more than 13,000 parents.
Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, Executive Secretary of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency, said the state’s approach was designed not only to respond to abuse after it occurred but also to prevent it.
“Our approach is not just remedial but also preventive,” she said.“We ensure that child-centred institutions, especially schools, have clear procedures to prevent GBV.”
Such interventions are significant, but the persistence of abuse raises a difficult question of how effective are policies and prevention programmes if children who manage to report abuse still struggle to obtain protection and justice?
When Justice is Denied
The challenges become more acute after a case is reported.
According to Ajayi, law enforcement remains one of the points at which cases can begin to disappear from the justice process.
“Law enforcement would have frustrated half of the reported cases before they got to court,” she said.
“For those that do get to court, half of them will be frustrated by the arduous process because of a lack of support systems or resources to pursue justice.”
Her assessment points to a critical weakness in Nigeria’s child-protection system: reporting abuse does not automatically translate into protection.
A child may report an incident, but the case still requires investigation, evidence gathering, medical or psychological support where necessary, prosecution and a functioning judicial process.
When any part of that chain breaks down, the child can be left exposed while the alleged perpetrator remains within the community.The consequences can extend far beyond the immediate incident.
The World Health Organisation identifies child maltreatment as a serious public-health problem and says its consequences can include impaired physical and mental health throughout life.
WHO also links childhood maltreatment with increased risks of behavioural and mental-health problems and other adverse outcomes later in life.
For children who survive abuse, therefore, justice is not simply about punishment of an offender. It can also determine whether the child receives the psychological, medical, social and other support needed to recover.
Voices from Ondo
The situation in Ondo State illustrates what can happen when cases fail to move through the formal justice system.
Fayanju Yetunde Deborah, a social worker at Minds Medica Specialist Hospital, said she sees the consequences of abuse among children who arrive at the mental-health facility with trauma-related disorders.
The hospital collaborates with the Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Akure, particularly in case management, psychiatric evaluation, therapy and referral services.
Out of the clients we’ve served, only a small percentage have seen their abusers prosecuted,” Deborah said.
“Many cases are settled informally, especially in rural areas, due to family pressure or community silence.”
Such informal settlements can deprive children of access to formal justice while leaving them to cope with the psychological consequences of abuse.
At Minds Medica Specialist Hospital, survivors can receive trauma-informed therapy, including individual and family-based interventions.
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The facility also conducts awareness campaigns for parents and caregivers on the early signs of abuse, engages in school-based mental-health outreach and offers teletherapy options aimed at making support more accessible, including in rural communities.
But access remains a challenge because stigma and the cost of treatment can prevent survivors and their families from obtaining sustained mental-health support.
Legal assistance is also often poorly funded, slow and difficult to access, particularly for families living in remote or economically disadvantaged communities.
For children who cannot safely return home, the lack of adequate shelter creates another vulnerability.
Without reliable and accessible places of refuge, some survivors may have little option but to depend on relatives, community networks or faith-based organisations for protection.
That can become particularly dangerous when the alleged perpetrator is a member of the family or someone within the child’s immediate circle.
A National Protection Gap
The problems documented in Lagos and Ondo shows a wider national challenge.
UNICEF’s 2024 assessment found that fewer than five in every 100 Nigerian children who reported violence received support, with understaffing and underfunding of social-service agencies identified among the factors limiting the response.
The same assessment found that 80 per cent of Nigerian children aged 5–14 experienced physical punishment in 2021, up from 73 per cent in 2016/17. Of those who experienced physical punishment, 29 per cent were subjected to severe physical punishment.
The figures demonstrate the scale of violence children face even before cases enter the formal child-protection system.
They also underline the distinction between having policies on paper and having institutions capable of implementing them.
Security experts have also said that although States have established agencies and introduced campaigns, school initiatives and public-awareness programmes.
But protection requires more than legislation and policy.
It requires trained personnel who can identify and respond to abuse, police officers capable of handling cases involving children sensitively, accessible medical and psychological services, prosecutors able to pursue cases, courts that can process them without unnecessary delay, and safe shelters for children who cannot remain in their homes.
Speaking to VONa Mr Ifeanyi Chinasa, a parent said that for some families, informal settlement may appear easier than navigating an expensive and lengthy justice process.
“But what looks like a family solution can leave a child carrying the consequences alone,” he said.
WHO’s evidence shows why that matters. Childhood maltreatment is associated with serious and lasting health and social consequences, including mental-health problems, and the effects can extend into adulthood.
The price of failing to intervene, therefore, is not confined to the immediate incident.
It can affect a child’s education, relationships, mental health and future wellbeing.
The evidence from Lagos and Ondo points to the need for a child-protection system that works as a connected chain rather than as isolated institutions.
Mrs Zeenat Asseh of HOGWIN, a non- government association said stronger law enforcement accountability, including better training for police and dedicated child protection units should be considered.
“There is also a need for quicker, victim-centered legal processes, with adequate funding for prosecution and victim support, functional, state-funded shelters across regions, and integrated multi-sectoral response, bridging health, legal, educational, and community services.
“Until these reforms take root, experts warn, policies and public declarations will remain empty gestures,” she said.