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POST-BREXIT NEGOTIATIONS: ALL HANDS ON DECK Last Friday, 23rd June 2017, something else happened apart from my younger brother's 24th birthday - the post-brexit negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Union. These negotiations were part of the discussions at the two-day summit held at the European Union Secretariat in Brussels, Belgium where the issues discussed ranged from tackling the spread of terrorist propaganda on the internet to plans for cooperation on defense among other discussions aimed at steering the European Union to a better future. Co-incidentally, 23rd June is the first anniversary of the Brexit referendum which saw the 'leave supporters' win 53% of the vote in a highly publicized election. The Brexit negotiations cover the negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Union leading up to Brexit, being the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union, following the United Kingdom's European Union membership refer

Combating Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking: The Call to Action Good Morning Everyone, today - 23rd June, 2017 is my younger brother's 24th birthday. 'Taiwo Olusanya' is my best friend and I would like every one of us to call and congratulate him as he adds another year, his mobile phone number is - +234 (0) 706 -935 -6264. I would have love to discuss in great details, all the naughty things we did together when we were much younger but I have something serious to discuss today. This week's article is wholly dedicated to address the menace of drug abuse and illicit trafficking and offer workable suggestions to decision makers and those at vantage positions on how to combat the surge. In addition, our individual and collective roles and responsibilities as members of the society would also be itemized. You are much welcome. Monday, 26th June, 2017 is the international Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking which is observed annually to raise awa

DAC 2017: ACCELERATING PROTECTION, EMPOWERMENT AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES  FOR CHILDREN IN AFRICA BY 2030. Good Morning Everyone, today is the Day of the African Child (DAC) and this years' observance will be commemorated on the theme “ The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development for Children in Africa: Accelerating protection, empowerment and equal opportunity ”. The Child friendly version is “ Accelerating protection, empowerment and equal opportunities for children in Africa by 2030 ". The Day of the African Child (DAC) is commemorated every year on 16th June in memory of the 16th June 1976 student uprising in Soweto, South Africa, during which students who marched in protest against the poor quality of education were massacred by the then apartheid regime in place in South Africa. The Day of the African Child (DAC) has been celebrated on June 16 every year since 1991, when it was first initiated by the Organization of African Unity (OAU). It honors those who partic

THE CHALLENGES OF THE AFRICAN CHILD: NIGERIA AS A CASE STUDY  Sheyi is barely six years old, yet he has to contribute something to improve the fortunes of the family, he hawks plantain every morning before going to school and he continues in the evening, he sells bottled drinks with snacks at Berger bus park just to complement the little pittance his parents earns. Sheyi's story is a common one, these are situations we are confronted with on a daily basis, you will always see child laborers, child hawkers, child beggars, child conductors and even child agberoes in every nook and cranny of our metropolises and you would be forced to wonder if it is as bad as it is made to seem.  In rural areas, children, especially girls, start work at 5 or 6 years of age. Today, 16th of June is the International day of the African Child and the bitter truth is that the African child is the most shortchanged in the world. In subsequent paragraphs, I would examine the challenges children

WOMEN IN POLITICS: Chauvinism vs. Feminism? The last time I was on vacation, I had ample opportunity to do the things I really like- chasing girls in the neighbourhood (just joking o), waking up late, visiting people, not going to work, sleeping all day and watching television. Watching TV- my favourite television station is CNN, I like Christine Amanpour, Becky Anderson, Hala Gorani, Richard Quest, Natalie Allen, Amara Walker, Maggie Lake amongst other wonderful presenters. I stay clued to the Cable News Network most of the time. However, on a fateful day, I saw a newsflash, “ Women allowed voting for the first time in Saudi Arabia ” Honestly, I did not know and I would not have believed if it was not on CNN that there is a country where women are still disenfranchised because of their gender. Hello somebody? It is 2015. Despite comprising over 50 percent of the world’s population, women continue to be under-represented as voters, political leaders and elected officials. Demo

CHILD MARRIAGE IS CHILD LABOR : CHANGE BEGINS WITH ME. “ My mother forced me into early marriage. She did it so my husband could help her with salt and sugar. During the marriage, my husband frequently beat me. My mother always said I had to get used to that pain because that’s what marriage means ,” recalls 15-year-old Lucy. “ My husband was forcing me to do work on farms to raise money for the family. Every day, I spent the whole day at the farm working ,” She lamented. Lucy’s husband not only abused her, but also forced her into agricultural labor , her experience not only highlights the widespread cases of child marriage in Malawi and other parts of the world, but also the on-going problem of child labor . These two practices are, in some cases mutually reinforcing and dis-empowering women and girls in similar ways, by denying children an education and creating a vicious cycle of inequality. In Malawi, 60% of girls aged between 13 and 18 are married. Marriage invo