The United Nations (UN) office in Nigeria has emphasised that substantial investment in human rights awareness is essential to drive meaningful growth and development in the country.
The UN humanitarian coordinator in Nigeria, Mohamed Fall, said this on Thursday in Abuja at a ceremony commemorating the 2025 International Human Rights Day.
Mr Fall, represented by the UNDP resident representative in Nigeria, Elsie Attafuah, spoke during the ceremony organised by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
The event is with the theme: ”Human Rights: Our everyday essentials—who is telling the story?”
The ceremony was put together for diplomatic partners, civil society leaders, and creative storytellers to discuss how narrative, voice, and cultural expression shape public understanding of human rights.
Mr Fall said, “You are the ones who preserve our folklore; you are the ones who tell stories through morals that millions walk past every day, and we see some in Lagos and many other places.
“To every photographer capturing protests, everyone on Instagram, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn explaining the Child Rights Act in Pidgin, every spoken word, and courts calling out gender-based violence, we must keep the message about human rights to boost awareness.
“Every graphic designer turning data on maternal mortality into infographics that go viral, you are the translators of human rights, your everyday essentials.”
Speaking at the event, Anthony Ojukwu, executive secretary of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), reiterated the need for adequate investment in human rights awareness to achieve set targets.
“Many of our people don’t even know they have fundamental human rights. After a very long period of military rule and bad governance, some of them have resigned to fate.
“They think that some of these things are normal, you know. So, the first challenge is to create awareness and let them know how they can access assistance if their rights are violated,” Mr Ojukwu said.
Meanwhile, the Belgian ambassador to Nigeria, Pieter Leenknegt, described the event as apt for promoting awareness of human rights.
“This can actually bring about the realisation of human rights in the country, as in other ones, especially given the striking presence of so many different creative arts branches in Nigeria and how they also internationally are breaking through.
“Also, as an embassy, we can create conversations around rights induced by displays of art.
“There is no way that you can perfectly realise the right to education or the right to food in just one go or even hold somebody accountable, so it is a gradual process,” he said.
The event featured a curated short film spotlight and a creative showcase walkthrough of microfilms and music produced by young Nigerian storytellers, illustrating rights in daily life, safety, identity, digital freedom, education, and justice.
Also, a high-level conversation on how creative humans humanise people’s rights issues, diplomatic perspectives on narrative power, safeguarding creative freedom, and cultural storytelling as civic engagement.
(NAN)