STRENGTHENING ACCESS TO MAINTENANCE AND CHILD SUPPORT: INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES

Abstract

This paper offers a critical appraisal of the international legal framework governing maintenance and child support within family relationships, with a primary focus on protecting children and dependent spouses from the economic consequences of divorce, separation, marital breakdown, or parental neglect. Maintenance and child support are fundamental obligations that serve to protect the welfare, dignity, and socio-economic stability of vulnerable family members. Despite their importance, effective enforcement of maintenance obligations across national borders remains hindered by significant differences in domestic statutes, procedural requirements, judicial architectures, and cultural attitudes toward familial responsibility. The paper examines principal international instruments designed to mitigate these obstacles, notably the Hague Conventions on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) 1989. These instruments advance harmonized standards for enforcement and embed the best interests of the child as a core universal principle. Building on this foundation, the paper assesses Nigeria’s domestic legal regime governing maintenance and child support, with particular attention to the Matrimonial Causes Act 1970, the Child’s Rights Act 2003, and pertinent constitutional provisions in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).To situate Nigeria’s experience within a broader comparative context, the research contrasts Nigerian law and practice with models from the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada, jurisdictions that have developed more robust judicial and administrative systems for ensuring compliance and accountability. From this comparative analysis, the paper extracts lessons on institutional coordination, streamlined enforcement procedures, and expanded access to justice for dependants vulnerable to economic hardship. Finally, the paper reflects on the philosophical and legal underpinnings of maintenance obligations in international family law, mapping points of convergence and divergence among different legal traditions in their approaches to family welfare and child rights protection. The paper concludes with targeted recommendations aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s maintenance enforcement regime through legal reform, capacity building, and improved cross-border cooperation.