Civilian Joint Task Force in Northeast Nigeria Signs Action Plan to End Recruitment of Children

The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, and UNICEF in Nigeria welcome today’s signing by the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) in Maiduguri, northeast Nigeria, of an action plan to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children.

The CJTF, a local group formed in 2013 to support the Nigerian security forces in the fight against Boko Haram in northeast Nigeria and to protect local communities from attacks by Boko Haram, progressively expanded over the years. The group have been engaged in security operations and more recently, involved in providing security to camps for internally displaced populations.

Through the Action Plan, the CJTF commits to put in place a number of measures to end and prevent child recruitment and use. Identifying and releasing all children within the group’s ranks and instructing its members not to recruit or use children in the future are examples of such measures.

UNICEF and partners will support the Nigerian authorities in providing reintegration services to all children released under the Action Plan.

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