Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye

When a child loses either one or both parents, it appears that the world comes crashing down on him. All hope seems lost and the future looks dim. 

For those in that category, an orphanage might present a ray of hope. The children are taken in and care for in such homes. But what happens when even those offering the helping hands suddenly become helpless themselves?

A charity organisation, Save the Children International, must have had orphanages in Nigeria at the back of its mind when it recently warned that the COVID-19 pandemic could turn into a serious child rights crisis in Nigeria. The group warned that hundreds of thousands of the most vulnerable children could be exposed to a dangerous mix of extreme poverty, malnutrition and hunger. It appears the prediction is coming to reality even sooner than expected. Orphanages that are supposed to be helping orphans are also currently in dire need.

Mercy Gichuhi, Acting Country Director, Save the Children International, noted that the socio-economic impact of the novel coronavirus will force many Nigerian poor households to turn to desperate measures just to survive, adding that children are most likely to face an increased risk of child labour, sexual exploitation, or child marriage, as families find it difficult to feed.

The 22 members of the group and home operators in Nigeria, in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, recently shared their most harrowing experiences during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Out of the 22 members of the organisation in the FCT, only four received some items from the Social Department Secretariat that couldn’t last them a whole day. With some of the homes housing over 100 children under lockdown, many have exhausted food and other essentials, while children due for immunization have not been able to do so. Charity organisations and individuals who usually reached out to the homes have not been able to do so. And accessing their corporate bank accounts has become difficult because of the policy of operating cheques for both deposits and withdrawals. These homes have also received little or no palliatives from the government.

Narrating their various experiences, proprietors and managers of these homes have, since the COVID-19 episode began, had it so rough.

The experience of the managers of Vine Heritage, Pastor Olusola and Dr Chinwe Stevens, has been less than palatable.

The couple said the facility had now realised that caring for the less privileged, especially children who have no other source of comfort, love and care other than the ones they are offered by some godly-spirited individuals, is no tea-party. They noted that the home has not been able to have access to its regular funding – either the money in the banks or funds from donors. Besides the fact that their supply stores had been depleted seriously from the early stages of the lockdown, they lamented that they had to extend kindness to neighbouring families that have also run short of essential needs.

The home caters to the needs of 157 children, with a staff strength of 32 and two volunteers. They are located on the outskirts of the FCT, where telecommunication networks are not always at their best. The reporter gathered that the home was established in April 2004 and the 157 children it houses are those rescued from infanticide practice by 57 communities in five area councils of the FCT.

Said Pastor Stevens: “We are able to go through this period by just sheer mercy. We bought a lot of foodstuff from our local suppliers on credit. One night, Ubba-Harris Reach-Out Foundation visited and gave three bags of rice, a bag of beans, a bag of garri and six litres of vegetable oil. A board member gave us N150,000 with which we were able to pay some of the debts. We have also received donations to the home but the account couldn’t be accessed due to the lockdown. We tried reaching our banks but the processes suggested by them are still on-going, but we cannot access our money.

“So, if I want to break down the experience of home operators and care givers, it will be as follows. We have children who aren’t able to get the routine immunisation due to the lockdown. There are 12 children in this category. There is the inability to access infant formula due to the lockdown. The suppliers were not available, and picking in pieces from street shops is so expensive. We operate corporate accounts and the banks were shut. We couldn’t transfer and we do not use debit cards. We couldn’t pay our workers due to the lockdown and we have 32 workers who have families to cater for.

“Due to the lockdown, we were not receiving good people who visit with foodstuff, toiletries and diapers. The 102 students among our children couldn’t go to school and the e-learning platform cannot be accessed since we live in the outskirt of Abuja. The children are eating more than usual and so our storage of food was depleted in a very short time. Some of the people in our community who couldn’t meet up with their feeding came to ask for food, so we gave food to 50 families within the last one month and the palliative promised by the government for the vulnerable has not been received.

“Lastly, I think the government should have supplied sanitizers and facemasks for the caregivers in the facility to keep the vulnerable safe and protected against COVID-19.”

For the proprietress of Lomina Orphanage Home, Philomena Udoeka, the challenges of COVID-19 have become really unbearable. According to her, the facility, which is a motherless babies’ home, has been in the care business for many years, giving hope and succour to many vulnerable and orphaned children. She said the lockdown on movement has taken a harsh toll on the welfare of the children in the home.

Her words: “Running an orphanage home like ours is associated with so many serious challenges and difficulties, most of which are finance and cost related. Currently, these challenges have become even more pronounced, pressing and unbearable with the pronouncement of total lockdown in the FCT.

“These innocent children in our care are apparently becoming the victims of the untold hardship occasioned by the effect of this stay-at-home order. As the proprietress of the home, the imposed restriction in movement has in no mean measure affected our business and sources of income with which we feed and take care of these deprived children.

“More so, some public spirited Nigerians who occasionally assist with their little widow’s mite have not been coming as a result of the restriction of movement. The home is currently in dire shortage of food and other household materials needed to cater to the survival of these vulnerable lads. We urgently need provision of foodstuff and beverages, financial assistance to facilitate the smooth running of the home and provision of other necessary household materials for the use of the children,” Udoeka said.

Another caregiver, Shade George, who is the Administrator of Fortitude Charity Foundation, an institution with 19 children, also lamented the harsh realities that have accompanied the national efforts to tackle the COVID-19. She complained of inadequate supplies for the children she has to care for. The facility started out on January 9, 2017 with a total of 25 children between the ages of 6 and 10.

“It’s been a trying period during this COVID-19 lockdown,” she said. “Three children between the ages of six and 10 months have been unable to receive their six months and nine months vaccines. With all, glory to God for the preservation of life of all the children at the home without which it would have been a very trying time.

“But for the intervention of two good Samaritans, little or no relief measures were put in place by the Social Department Secretariat or any government agency to assist the home. A meagre loaf of bread, two boxes of ant-infested gala sausage roll, two small boxes of coconut chips and three packets of noodles was all the secretariat could share to a home with 19 children. Till date we are still waiting for the intended palliatives,” she said.

The experience of the Children at the Christ Treasure Royal Orphanage has not been any better. The administrator of the facility, Kingsley Onuerio, said the lockdown measure has shut down the home’s donation streams, among other harsh realities that COVID-19 brought.

Hear him: “Christ Treasure Royal Orphanage was established in 2004. It is 17 years old. We have 64 children under our care and we have not been able to take four of them for immunisation.

“As a home operator, I sincerely appreciate the government for the effort and measures put in place to check the spread of the deadly virus. But there are some concerns that I think should be looked at if possible.

“Challenges during lockdown have been the untold hardship since movements was restricted, which has prevented visitation by good people of Nigeria. Accessing health care has been difficult; Housing the children all day into the next day has not been easy, now I understand the role the school they attend plays in keeping them away for some hours.

“We have completely run out of stock because they are all at home during the hours that they should normally be in school. They eat while nothing is forthcoming. Home operators solely depend on donations from well-meaning Nigerians. Now, the lockdown has stopped such opportunity. Now, the government gave what looked like palliative measures but I must confess the persons handling the distribution have not done well at all in the distribution.”