The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Tuesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ombudsman of the Bolivian Republic of Venezuela to raise the bar of human rights protection in Nigeria and the South American country.
The Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Chief Tony Ojukwu, SAN, OFR, who signed the MoU with the visiting Ombudsman stated that the idea was to define critical areas of partnership between the two Human Rights Institutions (HRIs), so as to deepen human rights promotion and protection in the two nations.
According to the Chief Human Rights Officer in Nigeria, the Commission had eased the protection of human rights in various thematic areas by establishing four Investigation departments: Civil and Political Rights, Women and Children, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and Vulnerable Groups.
Ojukwu also stated the readiness of the Commission to explore opportunities in the area of exchange programmes between the staff members of the Commission and those of the Bolivian Republic of Venezuela, saying that good exposure to human rights best practices were very useful in the work of human rights.
Such opportunities, he noted, would boost the capacities of staff members of both human rights Institutions, while at the same time equipping them with the necessary skills needed in the course of their work.
Earlier, the Bolivarian Ombudsman, Alfredo Ruiz Angelo said that the delegation was in the Commission to seek collaboration towards improving human rights protection in the two countries with a long history of bilateral cooperation.
Specifically, the Bolivarian envoy stated that the collaboration would focus on protecting the rights of Persons with Disabilities (PWD), and women/children among other critical human rights concerns.
In his remarks at the occasion, his Excellency Ambassador of Venezuela to Nigeria,
David Caraballo, recalled the long-existing cooperation between Nigeria and the Bolivian Republic of Venezuela, which he noted had been in oil and gas, technology, and engineering.
He restated the commitment of his country to extend the collaboration in other areas such as human rights and promotion of good governance, which according to him were part of the reasons behind the visit.
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