Ford Foundation has decried the high rate of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in Nigeria.
The organisation noted this in Calabar, yesterday, during an event packaged by Gender and Development Action (GADA), and funded by Ford Foundation.

At the ‘High-Level Stakeholders’ Advocacy Meeting on Reducing Gender- Based Violence in Cross River State’, Programme Officer, Ford Foundation, Olufunke Baruwa, said all hands must be on deck to end the trend.

She said it is the collective responsibility of every stakeholder, especially faith-based and traditional institutions, to stop all forms of gender-related violence in their spaces.

Baruwa said: “It is our collective responsibility to end gender-based violence. Traditional and religious leaders…we need them to stop issues on witchcraft, where a woman will be accused of being a witch, or a husband would rape his wife and people would say, ‘keep it a secret because marriage is for better or worse.’ We need you to change these narratives.

“Ask the government to prioritise GBV in the state. Faith-based leaders and traditional rulers must stand up against GBV because they are powerful voices in our society. Sadly, many pastors try to protect perpetrators. GADA is in collaboration with faith-based organisations to end this menace.”

Speaking shortly, in an interview with newsmen after the event, the founder of GADA and a former Ambassador to Ethiopia, Nkoyo Toyo, said the event was organised to bring together stakeholders, especially the new government in the state, to find a lasting solution to gender-based violence in Cross River.