Stakeholders in Nigeria, including the government, have resolved to ensure the dispensation of justice for victims of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) and related crimes in the country ahead of this year’s International Women Day (IWD).
This was part of a communiqué issued at the end of a two-day conference, which hosted commissioners from across the 36 states of the federation.
Organised by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), the event was supported by the European Union (EU) to empower and seek areas of collaboration towards eliminating all forms of social disparities in the country.
The conference also called on government, development institutions and diplomatic missions to support the implementation and scaling of policies and interventions that ensure gender equality and inclusion, while also urging the media to support and amplify solution-oriented advocacy that protects the rights of women, children and Persons With Disabilities (PWDs).
Commending the efforts of EU and International IDEA, Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, disclosed that the government was working to emplace measures to curb the issue.
She noted that President Bola Tinubu will, on March 7, inaugurate a transparency and integrity brigade to monitor and ensure the safety of women and children against verbal and physical abuse.
Head of Programmes, International IDEA, Danladi Plang, said the conference was organised to shed light on some of the key challenges women, children and PWDs face in their quest for justice.
Commissioner for Women Affairs, Akwa Ibom State, Ini Adiakpan, said the era when women were neglected in the decision-making process was over.
Adiakpan, who is the Dean of Commissioners for Women Affairs, hailed the idea of establishing inclusive schools that are not exclusively for disabled persons, which she said would aid the fight against stigmatisation.
