The Vice President spoke, yesterday, in Abuja when he declared open a
two-day forum themed: ‘National Dialogue on Girls: Towards a Girl-
Friendly Nigeria. The event was jointly organised by the African Child Policy Forum, ACPF, Women Arise for Change Initiative and the Africa-Wide Movement for Children, AMC. Osinbajo, who identified social and cultural prejudices as some of the critical problems militating against the girl child in Nigeria, said despite efforts by the Federal Government to curtail the menace, states and local governments also have a role to play. Osinbajo said comparing Nigeria to other countries might be missing the point, since the Federal Government cannot force other tiers of government to implement policies and laws without the concurrence of states and local governments. Earlier, Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Dame Pauline Tallen, described the dialogue as a clarion call on government and well-meaning individuals to support the girl child.