KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTISES RELATING TO THE CHILDS RIGHT ACT AMONG PARENTS IN IBADAN NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF OYO STATE

Abstract

Child's Rights are fundamental basic rights which children are entitled to as contained in the International Child Rights Convention(ICRC) and the Nigerian Child Rights Act (NCRA). The components of these rights which have influence on child's health and development include: rights to education, protection from abuse and guidance in decision-making. Parents' knowledge and compliance is paramount to achieving the goal of the Act but this has not been adequately investigated in Nigeria. This study was therefore conducted in lbadan North Local Government Area (INLGA) to investigate the knowledge, attitude and practice of parents on child's rights. A five-stage Sampling technique was used to select the LGA, wards, community, household and 432 parents of children aged <18years from inner-core, transitional and peripheral developmental region. A semi-structured questionnaire comprising some of the child’s right components were used to assess parent's knowledge, attitude and practice. Knowledge about child's rights was assessed using 12-point scale; scores <-5 and >5 were grouped as poor, fair and good respectively. Attitude towards child's rights was assessed with a 10-item Likert scale; scores of <-5 and >5 were categorised as negative and positive respectively. Child's rights practice was assessed on 8-point scale and scores of <4 and >-4 were considered poor and good respectively. Six Focus Group Discussion (FGDs) sessions were conducted. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics. Chi-square test at 0.5% level of significance while qualitative data were subjected to thematic analysis. Respondents mean age was 44.7±11.6 years, 53.9% were females and 62.7% had at least secondary education. There was better awareness of NCRA (18.3%) than the ICRC (0.9%). Respondents with poor, fair and good knowledge of child's rights were 81.9%, 11.5% and 7.5% respectively. Awareness about the NCRA was significantly associated with gender (p=0.004); education (p=0.000); and area of residence (p=0.000). The opinion of 75.0% respondents was that children should be allowed to exercise their rights only when they become teenagers. Significantly, respondents' area of residence had association with their attitude towards the child's right (p=0.050). The NCRA practices which promote child's good health included- sending them to school (90.0%), limiting the task a child can do (89.8%), and then guiding in decision-making process (90.3%). Bad governance, poor economic situation, and lack of enforcement of laws were listed by FGD participants as factors limiting the compliance with Child's Rights Act. The parents although unaware of the Child's Rights Acts but reportedly practiced some of the components of it as their responsibility to the health and development of the child. These positive practices should be reinforced and public enlightenment put in place to further create awareness and improve the knowledge of the Act.