UNICEF Representative to the Maldives Dr Edward Addai shared with The Edition his insights into the situation surrounding the protection of children's rights in the Maldives, and actions being taken by UNICEF to safeguard these rights.
“What we want to achieve is for every island in this country where there is a child, for that island to be child-friendly, and resilient. And we are convinced that unless we build young people who are advocates, as well as friends of children, who are helping us drive the agenda, we will never get there…We need you. Be a friend of children,” Dr Edward Addai appealed in his quiet, calm manner.
Dr Addai, even upon first introduction, makes evident his pleasant, approachable personality. A man of charisma, assuredness, and strong character, he seems like the ideal candidate to be leading the advocacy for something so inherently key as the protection of the rights of our children and young people.
With over three decades of professional experience, Dr Addai started his career as a physician in a small district in his native Ghana, moving ahead several steps in the intervening years, establishing himself as an expert in management, programme design and as a systems thinker, until we find him here today, working alongside us in ascertaining the safety, care and rights of our most treasured members of community as the UNICEF Representative to the Maldives.
Dr Addai spoke at length with The Edition about the flagship programmes being run by UNICEF, as well as the underlying issues that they aim to address through these initiatives.
Dr Addai began with pointing out that Maldives, as it exists today, has some characteristics that will remain unchanged for the foreseeable future. He highlighted that all efforts being undertaken in the Maldives must be designed with these factors in consideration.
“Your island architecture presents unique opportunities, and alongside that, unique challenges. The challenges mainly concern access and numbers,” he said.
Like others before him, he pointed out the infeasibility of establishing dedicated quality services in islands with extremely low numbers of residents. Asked if this, although justified in practical terms, may not have the unintended result of marginalizing a group of people, and what could be possible measures to avoid such circumstances, Dr Addai made some suggestions.
Dr Addai hailed connectivity as one of the most efficient solutions to this issue, especially highlighting the importance of internet connectivity. Besides that, physical connectivity in the form of robust transport systems was also noted as necessary.
“This will bring islands closer together than it would otherwise be. The next important change that is required is more of a mental model, a change in mindset, where you begin to consider that when an infrastructure is built or a service is provided on an island, it is not just for that island alone, but rather for a collection of people. In other words, you increase social integration, you try and articulate your development in such a way that the island is just the space for reaching out to so many people [within the region].”
“In an island where you have about a thousand people, you put up a hospital uniquely for the island. In such an instance, unfortunately, even the doctors and nurses there will not have enough patients to treat. Or say, a school in Kulhudhuhfushi. Yes, it is for the children of Kulhudhuhfushi, but it can also perform a regional function. Otherwise, the doctors, the teachers, they will end up unable to use their skills to their full potential. The utilization of these facilities will be below efficiency level,” he explained, noting that the current government’s aim to create regional hubs across the country appears to be designed to address this issue.
“Maldives does not have enough people. The recent census data indicates that you are not having enough children to replace the population,” he spelled it out.
Dr Addai said that while this is the result of the successes Maldives is reaping from historical investments, such as in education, healthcare, immunization, and such, this, in itself, poses its own challenges.
“Actually, in Maldives, very few children die at birth. Very few mothers also die at childbirth. This is due to medical advancements, and yet today, this has changed your demographics, which presents another challenge. You have an issue of numbers, and you have an issue of the architecture of your demographics pyramid.”
“Your society is changing very, very fast. The family structure is part of your DNA, but the context does not allow you to remain as close you would have loved to be,” Dr Addai pointed out.
He talked about how today, unlike even a few decades ago, grandparents are no longer there to babysit as parents go to work and elsewhere. Increasingly, nuclear families are living on their own, for various reasons, caring for themselves and their children as they juggle work and other responsibilities.
“Women must work, and men must work. The cost of living is getting higher. Housing is a big problem, especially so in the cities. And you have access to the internet, thus becoming globalized. So, the family structure is under a lot of stress,” Dr Addai observed.
“Your social structure is changing, and is changing very, very fast.”
“Maldives is an upper middle income country, which is wonderful, but it is driven by tourism. Covid taught us that we cannot take that for granted. Tourism is driving land reclamation, which again has repercussions for your marine system, which is the beauty of Maldives. But can you imagine a Maldives without a tourism industry?”
The economy is going to have a definite impact on children, and that is where Dr Addai’s concerns lie. He commended the government for its work in social protection, but at the same time emphasized the need for further, swift action to safeguard the future of the children and Maldives.
Dr Addai noted that there are four key milestones in every child’s life, and explained the situation in relation to Maldives.
“Children struggle to survive between being newborns until beyond 2 years of age. The nice thing about Maldives is, you have concurred it. But when you concur it, you create a different challenge. The challenge from a medical standpoint is that children who would normally have died due to either being premature or having abnormalities, now survive because of medical development. However, many of them end up facing medical complications later in life as a result of this. So that is one level, the new challenges that our successes bring forth,” Dr Addai stated.
The next milestone he highlighted is at age 5, when children are ready for school. Then by age 10, they are ready to learn. And the final milestone is at age 18, when they are ready for work.
Dr Addai noted that Maldives is doing well both with survival and with getting children into school.
“The missing link is between ages 2 and 5. But parents and society are coping, although it is not well regulated,” he observed.
Dr Addai went on to praise the Maldives’ school system, saying it is not observed anywhere else in the world that all children attend school, 100 percent, during primary school.
The problems arise between lower secondary and upper secondary grades.
“This is where they enter adolescence, and adolescence is the most difficult period of any person’s life. Their bodies are changing, they begin to think they are adults, to behave like adults, and yet they possess neither the mental readiness nor the financial means to be an adult at this point. It is a time of conflict in their minds. This is when they are most vulnerable, and unfortunately, this is also when the protective factor of school is lost,” Dr Addai said.
He spoke about predatory elements in society that target children around this age to take them away from a life of education and work towards other harmful, sometimes even criminal, activities.
He lamented that many children, when they transition into adulthood after such struggles, never succeed in getting a foothold in the workforce, and even when they do, they happen to fall off.
Women, meanwhile, do well in school, but it has been observed that less women transition from school to work at all, he said, adding that this is even more markedly so in the political field.
“So it is to address all these, that we have established our flagship programmes.”
Aminath Jala Zuhury, UNICEF Advocacy and Communications Specialist explained the flagship programmes.
“Kudhinnaa Gaathun – Aharumen Beynunvaa Rah” [translated as Close to Children – The Island We Want] is an initiative through which UNICEF seeks to connect national systems, policies and programmes with the services and opportunities provided to children and youth at island level and bring our flagship programmes closer to children,” Jala explained.
According to Jalah, there are currently 8 flagship programmes in progress. These are:
1. “Beleniveriya” – Positive Parenting Programme
2. Mental Health and Preventing Substance Abuse
3. Climate Resilient Actions
4. IBAMA: Caring Island Communities
5. Transforming Education
6. “Kaigen Hin’gamaa” – Nutrition and Healthy Lifestyles
7. “Rakkaatheri” - Violence Against Children
8. Developing and Engaging Young People
Jala said that in their efforts to engage youth more, and to see if their work resonates with youth, UNICEF offers internships to young persons to work alongside their teams. Dr Addai introduced us to one young person who had joined the team as an intern and chosen to stay on as a consultant.
Fathimath Easha Moosa, just 22 years of age, emphasized one thing she particularly appreciated about being one of three young people currently on the team.
“I feel like my voice is heard, that my opinions and views make a real impact on the work being done here, and that is invaluable.”
“Anybody who is looking into the future must respond today. That’s why we at UNICEF respond today for tomorrow,” Dr Addai stated.
“If Maldives wants to be competitive in the global landscape, if Maldives wants to run its own economy, it is crucial for it to have competitive people, and it cannot afford to lose a single child,” he asserted.
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