Family Stability and National Development

For a nation to develop properly, then it must invest in the development of families because families are the building blocks of any society. Thus, investing in the growth of a family is bound to have great rewards in the future.The pandemic, however, brings into sharp focus the importance of the family and the need to invest in social policies that will protect the most vulnerable individuals and families.

Definition of a Family

The family is recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as the natural and fundamental group unit of society which is entitled to protection by both community and state.

The above is an indication that being a member of a family is one’s fundamental human right that should be respected and supported by the society and the state. Families should be spaces for love, care and sharing, a place where people should be accepted for who they are, a refuge when times are tough and a springboard to go out into the world and achieve great things.

The reality, however, in Nigeria, is that we have limited families that can fit into the above description. Then will it be right to say that the government and the society have failed in ensuring the fundamental human right to family life for the majority of Nigerians? For a family to achieve the above functions, then that family must be stable.

Family Stability

Family stability is an essential component of social stability and protection. The break down in families is causing new and unforeseen challenges to social welfare that is, in turn affecting the development and growth of the nation as a whole. The pandemic crisis has thus exposed the failure of the government in the provision of family welfare package to Nigerians. And where such isn’t in place, families would struggle with maintaining a work-life balance which would also affect their productivity and output.

A stable family also provides a climate for moral development and peace. However, this is not the country’s current situation, which is primarily as a result of the breakdown of moral in families. Hence we begin to see families getting more unstable, which consequently leads to unstable and immoral children in the society.

There is a need to help families get stability and stability should reflect in the following areas.

• Financial
• Mental
• Social
• Infrastructural

Family stability should also be measured based on the following

1.Safe and adequate housing

2.Safe community

3.Adequate income to meet family needs

4.Access to quality education

5.Access to quality health care services

Additionally, it is essential to note that family functioning is related to the development of individuals, and the functioning of individuals is related to family functioning. For this purpose, for a country to have productive individuals, then it needs to invest in families and to have stable families in the society, it needs to invest in its citizens.

Family Impact Principles

These are principles that are evidence-based that help looks at policies /laws that can help strengthen family functionality.

1. Family responsibility: To promote family wellbeing and self-sufficiency, policies and practice should be aimed at supporting the functions of family rather than supplanting them.
2. Family stability: Policies and practice must encourage the family to be stable through socioeconomic empowerment and also by having an active social welfare system.
3. Family relationship: Policies and practice should acknowledge that family ties, whether positive or negative, are powerful and persistent.
4. Family diversity: Policies and practice should recognize the diversity in families.
5. Family engagement: Policies and practice should strive to incorporate family voices, particularly those families marginalized who are often disconnected from political and planning processes.

Effectiveness of Nigeria’s Social Welfare System to Supporting Families

The overall aim of such a framework is to provide a source of livelihood to individuals and families. This could be in terms of health, food, house and child care and help overcome barriers that prevent them from accessing basic services. However, the Nigerian government has not invested enough, and the pandemic has made it clear that the social welfare system is too weak to cater for its citizens. The lack of such structure or framework is one primary reason the issue of vulnerable children in the streets continues to be a growing threat in the society.

One hindrance to provision of social welfare framework is the lack of accurate data as not every family in Nigeria is registered, neither are children of these families. Consequently, if there are no sufficient data on sizes of families, current income of families and so on, it limits the government capacity to build a framework or properly implement an existing one. Another issue is that the system isn’t strong enough to get data of the people resulting in the deprivation of those in rural areas from accessing any form of welfare framework.

There is also a lack of synergy in the country’s framework, which makes it non-effective and mostly non-existent. Even though the country has responsible ministry, Development Secretariat and the Ministry of Women Affairs, they are not adequately empowered for their mandate.

Another problem in Nigeria is that its citizens do not do what they ought to do, basically because of our value system. There is a great level of mistrust between the citizens and the government and because of these citizens are skeptical when government demand from a them some responsibility so that they access government interventions. Corruption in the public sector is another hindrance to a workable and effective social welfare system in Nigeria.

The family system, on the other hand, is overstretched and wrongly utilized in the country. Many times, the family often take on the roles of government in providing food, medical care, education and other basic needs to their children. This, therefore, makes it difficult for the family to play other essential roles such as nurturing, monitoring the provision of basic needs by government, inculcating good habit etc.

Responsible Stakeholders for Family stability

– The members of the family: This consist of the father, mother, and children. They are essential in ensuring the stability of the family, and their roles must be respected and recognized.

– The extended family: As Africans, we depend on the extended family for stability. But we must be cautious here because many families have experience instability caused by the extended family members.

– The government and its relevant ministries and agencies.

– The traditional, community and religious leaders are also critical stakeholders in ensuring family stability.

Recommendations

• The government needs to revive the census. It is a crisis in itself that the country has been operating with census figures of 14 years now. Also, the regulation of marriage registrations, birth registrations and an effective identity management system are all key to the development of an effective social welfare system in the country. The government cannot plan for people they do not know thus, data is critical in forming policies that can ensure family stability.
• The government needs to come up with laws and policies that will promote proper family formation and stability. This includes gender-responsive, family-friendly laws and policies to ensure that families are places of equality and justice. They must also help to strengthen families to achieve the best level of social protection and economy stability.
• The government should try and cushion the cost of living for the citizens, especially the low-income earners, which can be by ensuring access to essential services like health care. This is because financial burdens ultimately lead to family instability.
• There is also a need to focus on a behavioural change campaign. There is the need to change our value system. If there is nothing to learn from COVID 19 is the fact that the family is always our safe place, If each family have the right values it will reflect in the society and country at large
• Religious and traditional leaders also have their role to play in the promotion of family values. Religious and traditional ethics uphold family values and sees the family structure as a place for proper training and development of a child.

Families are the building blocks of the society, and if the families are unstable, then the society will be unstable. So let us begin to work towards the stability of families in our society as we move ahead to build a great nation.