A Nigerian researcher and professor of comparative literature, Prof. David David, has expressed displeasure over the high rate of child labour in the country, lamenting that no efforts have been made to end the pandemic despite several public outcries, the Punch reports.
The professor, while noting that there should be a strong campaign against child labour, stressed that every child including those with disabilities deserves the right to quality education.
He said this in a statement issued on Monday to announce the launching of the “Nigerian Books of Record” which was meant to document the achievements of individuals in the country.
Prof. David said his foundation embarked on a “Read campaign” to create and promote educative stories emphasizing children’s right to education, eradication of child labour, abuse, and molestation.
He further said efforts are underway to take 70 per cent of the child population off the streets into the classrooms.
According to the researcher, Nigerian Books of Record is a compendium of everything good about Nigeria.
He noted that the project aims to recognize and immortalise Nigerians who have made remarkable achievements in their chosen professional callings to break the gaps between history and achievers in Nigeria.
He further said, “The conception of Nigerian Books of Record is a corollary of the urgent and explicit need to unearth the nation’s hidden but glorious human treasures, past and present that have long been interred underneath the country’s sand of history.
“The book is an integral text which fills a yawning gap in Nigeria’s quest for constructing a sustainable tomorrow. In providing glossary and esoteric expositions of Nigeria’s cherished past, the Nigerian Books of Record, though germane, stars as a feeder pillar that outlines such polemic issues needed as an underlay for future nation-building.”
He added, “The project inspired the publication of the 36 Nigerian States Books of Record and other innovative ideas.
“In 2018, the Nigerian Books of Record project inspired READS Campaign Africa, aimed at ending child molestation and fighting for the rights and well-being of children, through short and educative novels, plays, and poetry that offer a timely solution to environmental and societal crimes committed against children.
“We are passionate about taking at least 70% of the child population off the streets into the classrooms.”
