Stakeholders in Imo State including legal practitioners, academics and law students have called for stronger institutional policies, effective enforcement mechanisms and greater accountability to combat sexual harassment and Gender-Based Violence (GBV) prevalence in tertiary institutions.

 

The call was made during a university policy dialogue and public lecture commemorating the 23rd anniversary of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, popularly known as the Maputo Protocol, held at Imo State University, weekend.

 

The theme of the event, organized by Alliances for Africa, AfA in partnership with the Centre for Gender Studies, Imo State University, (IMSU) is, “Strengthening University Responses to Sexual Harassment through Law, Policy and Institutional Accountability.”

In his opening remarks, the IMSU Vice Chancellor, Professor Uchefula Ugonna described the Maputo Protocol as a landmark instrument for preserving human dignity and protecting the rights of women and girls.

 

Prof. Chukwumaeze, represented by Deputy Vice Chancellor, Administration, Professor Martin Onu noted that measures adopted by the university management including promoting discipline among students have greatly discouraged Gender-Based and Sexual Violence (GBSV), adding that the institution remained committed to providing a safe and conducive learning environment.

 

He commended the organizers for initiating the dialogue and frowned at all forms of human rights abuses especially ones involving students, minors and the vulnerable people in the society.

 

Speaking, the Director of the Centre for Gender Studies, IMSU, Dr. Ngozi Chuma Umeh, said the anniversary provided an opportunity to deepen awareness of the provisions of the Maputo Protocol and encourage greater respect for human dignity.

 

She reiterated that Imo State University maintains zero tolerance for Gender-Based Violence and sexual harassment, explaining that the Centre was established to ensure that “every student feels protected to learn and have a space where everyone is welcomed.”

 

According to her, “IMSU has made remarkable progress in addressing GBSV by sanctioning offenders, conducting regular sensitisation programmes across the university community, signing partnership agreements with civil rights organizations, establishing a Confidential Corner where survivors can safely report cases, and inaugurating volunteers to monitor the conduct of students, lecturers and other workers within the institution.”

 

The AfA Director of Programmes, Ms. Blessing Duru, emphasized the need to equip law students and young lawyers with adequate knowledge of international, regional, national, state and local legal frameworks, including the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) law, to enable them effectively pursue justice in Gender-Based Violence cases after graduation.

 

She described the partnership between AfA and the IMSU Centre for Gender Studies as a positive step towards strengthening institutional responses to GBSV.

 

Duru noted that the Maputo Protocol remains a unique legal instrument addressing the realities confronting women and girls across Africa, adding that the public lecture was designed to “shape mindset, transform behaviours, shift patterns and push structural barriers within the school system that enable and support GBSV.”

 

She urged participants to speak up against injustice and challenge harmful structures that perpetuate rights abuses within educational institutions.

 

Delivering the keynote address titled “Twenty-Three Years of the Maputo Protocol: Progress, Challenges and the Way Forward,” legal expert and gender rights advocate, Ndidi Anike Val-Okeoma, Esq., called on Nigerian universities to strengthen legal frameworks, institutional policies and accountability mechanisms to effectively combat sexual harassment and Gender-Based Violence on campuses.

 

She observed that weak implementation of existing policies, fear of victimisation and inadequate accountability continue to deny many survivors access to justice.

 

Val-Okeoma advocated the adoption of comprehensive anti-sexual harassment policies, confidential reporting systems, protection for whistleblowers, enhanced legal literacy and transparent disciplinary procedures, stressing that “justice—not silence—is the best way to protect institutional integrity and uphold the rights guaranteed under the Maputo Protocol.”

 

Also speaking, the Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Owerri Branch, Dr. Ekezie Onumajulu, described the Protocol as Africa’s acknowledgement that sustainable development, social justice and democratic governance cannot be achieved while women continue to suffer discrimination, violence and exclusion.

 

Onumajulu, who also serves as Chairman of the Human Rights Committee of the NBA Owerri Branch, maintained that higher institutions must remain places of safety, dignity, intellectual growth and equal opportunity. He called for collective action against sexual harassment and other forms of violence, noting that they violate fundamental human rights, undermine dignity, erode equality, threaten personal security and compromise the right to education, as well as advocated accountable institutional governance.

 

Presenting a goodwill message, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Imo State Police Command, DSP Henry Okoye, commended the provisions of the Maputo Protocol and condemned sexual harassment, sexual assault, rape, domestic violence and other forms of Gender-Based Violence as serious criminal offences that violate human dignity and deserve appropriate punishment.

 

Okoye assured participants of the Command’s commitment to working with relevant stakeholders towards building a Gender-Based Violence-free society. He encouraged survivors to promptly report cases and preserve evidence, warning that silence only emboldens offenders.

 

He also urged IMSU students to respect one another’s rights and build relationships founded on mutual respect, consent and integrity.

 

The event, which was also attended by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academics), Professor Agnes Njoku, the Secretary of the AfA Board of Directors, Professor Sam Ezeanyika, and other dignitaries, featured an interactive panel discussion involving lawyers and IMSU law students.

 

The panelists unanimously stressed that beyond policy formulation, practical enforcement mechanisms, effective institutional accountability and survivor-centred justice are critical to eliminating sexual harassment and Gender-Based Violence in Nigerian universities.