Oyo Partners UNICEF, NGO to Promote Safer Parenting and Protect Children
The Oyo State Government has teamed up with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Value Female Network Africa to strengthen child protection through a new positive parenting initiative.
The Gender Transformative Positive Parenting Programme 1.0 began with a two-day training for community facilitators held on September 2 and 3, 2026, in Ibadan, the state capital.
UNICEF Lagos Field Office Child Protection Specialist, Denis Onoise, said empowering parents and caregivers with the right knowledge was crucial to preventing violence, abuse and neglect against children.
He described parents and caregivers as the first protective layer around children, noting that better-informed caregivers would be able to identify potential risks early and connect vulnerable children with appropriate support services.
Onoise explained that positive parenting went beyond correcting or disciplining children, saying it was also an important part of creating a stronger child protection system.
He urged the facilitators to take the lessons from the training into their communities, strengthen existing child protection structures and improve awareness of referral services available to children facing risks.
The Executive Director of Value Female Network Africa, Costly Aderibigbe-Saba, said the initiative would also address harmful practices and social norms affecting children in families and communities.
She explained that positive parenting involved creating homes where children could feel secure, respected and comfortable enough to communicate with their parents.
According to her, the programme deliberately combines parenting education with child protection issues because children may experience several forms of vulnerability at the same time.
The curriculum will cover positive discipline, child development, parent-child communication, gender-equitable caregiving, positive fatherhood, adolescent supervision and digital safety.
It will also educate parents about preventing sexual violence, female genital mutilation, child marriage and other harmful practices, while highlighting the importance of birth registration and knowing where to seek assistance when a child needs additional protection.
The Director of Programmes at Value Female Network Africa, Samuel Abimbade, said the programme was developed in response to concerns about child neglect, abuse, violence and inadequate communication between parents and children.
He noted that parenting had become increasingly demanding because children were growing up amid strong influences from technology, social media and other factors outside the home.
Abimbade stressed that positive parenting should not be interpreted as allowing children to act without restrictions, adding that appropriate discipline remained necessary.
Representing the Oyo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Inclusion, Mrs Adediran Oluwawemimo, advised parents to establish closer relationships with their children.
She said children who were confident that they could approach their parents without fear would be more likely to discuss their experiences and challenges openly.
The Head of Operations, State Operations Coordinating Unit, Adelugba Omotola, also described the programme as timely, given the increasing external influences on children.
Following the facilitator training, participants are expected to organise structured parenting sessions in selected communities over a 10-week period.
The programme will be implemented in Ibarapa North East, Ibarapa South West, Egbeda and Akinyele Local Government Areas, with about 800 parents and caregivers expected to benefit directly.
Organisers said the community-based approach was designed to encourage practical discussions among parents and promote lasting behavioural changes that would improve children’s safety and wellbeing.
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