The Export and Import Bank of China (China EXIM) and UNICEF have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on essential services for the well-being of children in Nigeria.
This was disclosed in a statement issued by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on Monday in Abuja.
According to the statement, the MoU was officially signed at China EXIM’s office in Beijing, China, following a meeting attended by China EXIM Vice President Yang Dongning and UNICEF Representative to China Amakobe Sande.
Mr Jimmy Ebi witnessed it, the acting Charge d’Affairs of the Embassy of Nigeria to China.
It added that the MoU was the first such a partnership agreement between UNICEF and a China-based financial institution.
The fund also said the new partnership would help UNICEF deliver integrated healthcare, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services.
This would be for vulnerable children and families in up to 12 healthcare facilities, 21 schools, 17 markets and 450 communities in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), with support from China EXIM and the Government of Nigeria.
The fund said ensuring access to WASH services by 2030 was one of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
It added that in Nigeria, inadequate access to WASH services was a major driver of child deaths and an increase in vulnerability to water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea, which leads to over 70,000 deaths of children under five annually.
However, only 10 per cent of Nigeria’s 110 million children are estimated to have access to essential WASH services.
The statement said that UNICEF aims to ensure more children and their families have equitable access to climate-resilient and safely managed water and sanitation facilities and practice safe hygiene behaviours.
“The programme will include the scale-up of quality and comprehensive primary healthcare services in facilities and communities, including maternal and newborn care and immunisation services.
“It will also expand access to services through community engagement, social mobilisation and behaviour change, along with strengthening WASH-related systems, capacity and institutions.”
The statement quoted Sande as saying the fund was grateful to China EXIM for the partnership.
“We look forward to working together to reduce the risk of waterborne diseases and improve critical services that ensure the wellbeing of children.
“UNICEF also hopes that this will be the first of more partnerships to help accelerate child health and development goals for children worldwide.”
Meanwhile, Dongning appreciated UNICEF’s active contribution to the global cause for children.
“This Nigeria programme marks a new beginning in our cooperation, and its practical results will serve as a positive example for future collaborations.”
In Nigeria, UNICEF Nigeria Country Representative Cristian Munduate said that waterborne diseases pose a serious and ongoing risk to the lives and well-being of children in Nigeria.
“This programme will help realise the rights of many thousands of children by improving healthcare services in the FCT.”
Together, UNICEF and China Exim are expected to mobilise financial resources to support children, provide technical expertise in programme implementation, explore innovative financing, and promote local procurement, capacity building, and knowledge sharing.
The MoU also highlights UNICEF’s role as a trusted partner for multilateral development banks and other financial institutions, supporting them in their efforts to have a more significant social impact on children.
