The Ogun State Government says it has revoked the provisional licences granted to 20 private orphanage owners operating in the State.
The State revoked the licenses due to non-compliance with regulations and laws prioritising the well-being and safety of vulnerable children in their care.
Adijat Adeleye, the State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, disclosed this on Friday during a meeting with members of private orphanage homes at, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, the State capital.
The Commissioner who expressed displeasure over some private orphanage owners’ activities, added that the State would not tolerate shady practices involving illegal adoption, child trafficking or maltreatment of children in their custody.
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“The state government’s actions aim to protect vulnerable children and maintain the integrity of orphanage services.
“About 20 orphanages with provisional licences were affected but not all of them were involved in various sharp practices like not following due guidelines on child adoption among other contraventions”
“But we have withdrawn the provisional licences of these 20 orphanages. We want to take our time to dig deeper and ensure that they are all doing the right things.
“We have told the affected orphanages to reapply after a month and we have given additional guidelines to those with permanent licences to ensure that the standard is not compromised,” she said.
