Children are a source of joy and lasting happiness to many families across the world. They give us hope for a better future even when things are at their darkest with their contagious optimism and boundless joy. This is why we go the extra mile to put a smile on their faces, and celebrate every success they attain, be it an excellent exam result, a successful colouring exercise, or their first time riding a bike.

The International Children’s Day celebration is a special day that invites us to be intentional about celebrating the bright future we have in our children and the promise of a better world for us as older people.

Without a doubt, children make the world a happier place and helping them realize their true potential is the first step in building the next generation of world leaders. This is why Maltina’s message of sharing happiness has been driven by initiatives that help children in different parts of Nigeria fuel and achieve their dreams.

It is in line with this drive that the recently concluded Maltina School Games earlier this year, was launched in the first place – to fuel and reward the dreams of our future sports champions, and also to encourage a culture of staying active and hopeful for a brighter and more wholesome future.

With a focus on young school children, the Maltina School Games set out to promote the development of children, improving their social and leadership skills, and bettering their health and overall wellness. The Olympic style inter-school and inter-state sporting event aimed to engage around 20 million secondary school children across the country, concluding with wins for everyone involved.

The wins ranged from the shared camaraderie of healthy competition, new friendships formed over the course of shared excitement, award medals, and the grand prize of 5 million Naira and 1.5 million Naira for the Overall Best State and Overall Best Athlete respectively. The lasting impact from the Maltina School Games remains the happiness that the engagement brought to the hearts of these children, which is at the centre of Maltina’s message.

As peculiar as this year’s children’s day celebration is, in the midst of a global pandemic, Maltina is calling Nigerians to keep the fresh perspective of relentless optimism that is common in children and celebrate with the hope for a joyful future. This is because the brand understands that happiness is not only a fleeting moment of joy, rather, it is the overall wellbeing that comes with activity, community bonding.

Regardless of the present realities, and our inability to honour the traditions of pomp and pageantry that characterized the Children’s Day celebrations before now, there’s still so much fun to be had!

While parks and recreational centres may be closed, parents around the world have learnt over the past few months of the pandemic, that if you cannot go to the park, you can bring the park to your home. In the spirit of keeping a healthy lifestyle and honing the brilliant minds of our children in these times, Maltina invites you to try out some innovative ways to make this year’s celebration a memorably happy one for your children, keeping in mind that the celebration is all about them.

You can organize a virtual Safari for your kids right in your parlour with Google AR, crack open a bottle of Maltina for everyone and sit back to soak up the excitement on their faces. You can also engage them in their favourite activities, whether that is sport, drawing, reading or painting, and go ahead to spice it up with a Maltina enriched snack break.

As we embrace the new normal with unshakeable optimism, do not forget to hold onto the things that are dearest to you with renewed delicateness. Whatever you do, try to keep your children active on Children’s Day, as we celebrate the future shapers of Nigeria, and raise enduring champions of happiness!