Niger rescues 19 children from illegal mining sites, parents face ₦5m bonds

The Niger State Child Rights Protection Agency, NSCRA, has rescued 19 children found mining at a site around the MI Wushishi Housing Estate, with the youngest estimated to be about eight years old.

The Director-General of the agency, Hajiya Ummul Mohammed, disclosed this in an interview with journalists in Minna, saying the children were found engaging in mining activities despite the dangers associated with the work.

According to her, the agency traced the parents of the affected children and required them to sign ₦5 million bonds each as a deterrent against allowing the children to return to the mining sites.

Mohammed said the intervention was part of the agency’s efforts to protect children from hazardous labour, exploitation and other forms of abuse.

She warned parents against exposing their children to dangerous working environments, stressing that parental poverty or inability to provide for children should not lead to their exposure to activities capable of endangering their lives.

The NSCRA boss said the agency would continue to intervene wherever children are found in hazardous environments and called for greater vigilance from parents, community leaders and other stakeholders.

She also appealed for stronger collaboration among government agencies and communities to prevent children from being exploited in mining and other dangerous activities.