Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, on Monday, demanded better care for children, describing them as the bedrock of any society’s future.

Obasanjo made this call while hosting the executives of the Paediatric Association of Nigeria, led by their President, Dr. Ekanem Ekure, at his residence inside the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta.

The former president said that paediatricians play a very important role in ensuring the well-being of children and should therefore never tire of raising the bar of excellence and doing much more for children, whom he described as the hope and future of any society.

Obasanjo said that, though he might have stopped having children, some of his children might also have stopped having children, but his grandchildren are having children, explaining the importance and place of children in the preservation of generations.

The former president said that it is against the backdrop of the importance of having healthy children in society that he would be willing to accept the advocacy role being assigned to him by the association, saying that he would always support efforts that are geared towards uplifting the well-being of children globally

Obasanjo said, “As a specialist in medical care of children, your profession is a profession of life and death. As a paediatrician, you are very unique because you deal with children.

“And the problem of dealing with children is that they are not like adults, so you must be able to feel for them. If it were to be me who comes to you as an adult, you will ask me where I am having the pain, whether it’s the right or the left, how I feel at night, but the children won’t be able to say all that.

“So your area of specialisation is therefore very unique. So, the task you have given me as an advocate for the children is one I will gladly accept.

“I am no longer giving birth to children, because my children are now adults, but my children are still having children, and my grandchildren are having children, so I will never stop having children.

“Because when I stopped, my children would not stop, and when my children stopped, my grandchildren would not stop, and the cycle continues. I therefore encourage you to keep doing your best to offer utmost care to our children, who are really our future.”

Ekure had earlier hailed the former president as a global icon and a leader committed to advancing the welfare and well-being of people worldwide.

She said that the association is in Abeokuta for its 57th Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference and would also like the former president to be an advocate for the well-being of the children.

Ekure said, “We have come to appeal to you to be an advocate for the children of Nigeria. More than half of Nigerians are children and adolescents, and they are a great asset to the country.

“Sadly, these assets are battling diseases that could be prevented, violations of human rights and their well-being, malnutrition, and that’s worrisome.

“That’s the reason why we have come to you, we know you hold a special, unique place as a former president, an elder statesman and that position makes your voice strong and loud.

“Anything you say will be listened to by the people in government and the people in public,” she said.

Addressing the press ahead of the 57th Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference of the association, Ekure, disclosed that more than 800 newborns are lost every day, despite the fact that most of the deaths are preventable.

The PAN president said Nigeria remained off track in achieving Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG-3), particularly in the areas of neonatal and under-five survival, describing the situation as a national emergency requiring urgent political, financial and technological intervention.

She said that “most recent national surveys show that neonatal mortality has not declined; instead, it has steadily increased.

“Children who survive the newborn period are still dying from malaria, pneumonia and diarrhoea — diseases the world already knows how to prevent and treat.”

According to her, about 50 per cent of child deaths in Nigeria are worsened by malnutrition, noting that poorly nourished children are far more likely to die from infections than healthy ones.

Ekure blamed vaccine hesitancy, misinformation, poverty, insecurity and weak health financing for Nigeria’s high burden of preventable child deaths.

She warned that the resurgence of diseases such as measles in some parts of the country mirrored global trends where immunisation rates have fallen.

“Vaccines save lives. They have saved millions of lives globally and continue to do so. In my hospital, for over 10 years, none of my students has seen a case of measles on the wards. Yet in other parts of Nigeria, we still record outbreaks.

Ekure said these challenges formed the core focus of PAN’s 57th Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference, tagged PANConf Gateway 2026, scheduled to be held in Abeokuta from January 21 to 23, 2026.

The conference theme, “Achieving SDG-3 and Child Health Care through Innovative Funding Models and Technology-Driven Solutions,” will bring together paediatricians, policymakers, researchers, development partners, media professionals and technology innovators to develop practical solutions to Nigeria’s child health crisis. (The PUNCH)

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