SOS Children’s Villages Nigeria has raised the alarm over what it describes as a rapidly worsening crisis of abductions and digital violence targeting girls and vulnerable children across the country, warning that “nowhere is safe” for many young Nigerians.
PERISCOPE NIGERIA reports that the organisation issued the warning as the world marks the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, saying the combined threats of physical insecurity and online exploitation have pushed Nigeria into what it calls a national emergency for child protection.
In a statement on Monday, National Director of SOS Children’s Villages Nigeria, Eghosa Erhumwunse, said the organisation is deeply troubled by the rising wave of attacks on children both offline and online.
According to him, “The safety of Nigerian girls, especially those without parental care, is facing a serious threat. What started as a crisis has now turned into a national emergency. Streets and schools are no longer safe, and the digital space, which should provide learning and connection, has become a platform for exploitation, abuse, and fear.”
He said Nigeria has recorded more than 1,680 school and community abductions in the last decade, with recent incidents pushing the figure close to 2,500, adding that each abduction represents “a failure of the country’s child protection systems.”
He added, “These attacks disrupt education, destroy families, and rob children of safety, continuity, and hope. For children without parental care, the danger is even greater — they are less protected, less sought after, and too often forgotten.”
Erhumwunse said the threat is no longer only physical, noting that Nigeria is also dealing with an escalating crisis of digital violence. He cited recent findings showing that 68.9 million internet users in Nigeria have faced online harms such as cyberbullying, impersonation, exploitation and sexual abuse, with women and girls making up 58 percent of the victims.
“Behind every manipulated image, hateful comment, threat or non-consensual content is a real person whose dignity and mental well-being are violated,” he said.
He noted that Nigeria’s status as one of the world’s top five cybercrime hotspots reflects how dangerous the online environment has become for vulnerable children. He stressed that the combination of physical abductions and digital exploitation has a disproportionate impact on children lacking stable parental care, the group the organisation primarily supports.
According to him, “The vulnerabilities that once made these children targets in the physical world are now being exploited online. Some are groomed, recruited or trafficked through screens. A country that fails to protect its children offline and online risks its future stability and moral standing.”
SOS Children’s Villages Nigeria urged urgent, coordinated national action to protect children from both physical and online threats. Erhumwunse called for full enforcement of the Child Rights Law, the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act and the Alternative Care Guidelines in all states, and for digital violence to be recognised as a core component of national security and gender-based violence reporting.
He also emphasised the need to secure schools as safe learning spaces, ensure stronger regulation and monitoring of online platforms, and guarantee justice for survivors through swift prosecution of abductors and digital predators.
He appealed to federal and state governments to make the protection of women and vulnerable children a national security priority. He also urged technology companies to take responsibility for harmful activities on their platforms, and called on traditional, religious and community leaders to “break the culture of silence” around child abuse. According to him, “We need every Nigerian parents, teachers, neighbours and citizens to act as protectors, reporters and advocates, not bystanders.”
Erhumwunse said the issue is not just about gender or childhood but a national moral and security crisis requiring unity and decisive action. “During these 16 Days of Activism, we stand firm: we will advocate, we will protect, and we will work tirelessly until every child, especially those without parental care, can live, learn and dream in safety,” he said.
