The International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) has urged the Kogi State Government and other stakeholders to partner with the organization in eradicating Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV), including Child Early Forced Marriage (CEFM) in the state.
Amina Suzannah Agbaje, the Vice President/National President of FIDA, made this appeal on Monday in Lokoja during a stakeholders consultative forum addressing the implementation status of gender-responsive services for Women and Girls.
Agbaje expressed concern that SGBV and CEFM continue to pose significant challenges, particularly for marginalized women facing intersecting forms of discrimination or multi-deprivation.
Lilian Okolo, representing Agbaje as the Kogi State Chairperson of FIDA, emphasized the need for a comprehensive and collaborative approach to combat the menace of SGBV. She stressed the importance of treating survivors with delicacy and empathy throughout the entire criminal process, considering their traumatic and psychological state.
Agbaje highlighted the insufficient awareness of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) law in Kogi State and underscored the purpose of the Stakeholders Consultative Forum. The forum aims to foster collaboration, partnerships, and shared learning on best practices for gender-responsive service delivery for women and girls, involving state actors and service providers through a coordinated approach.
“This consultative forum is aimed at also improving networking by Civil Society Organisations in the state towards an improved GBV programming, prevention and response while providing a platform for state and non-state actors to strategically unify strategies in mitigating cases of Gender Based Violence (SGBV) through policy influencing, ” she stated.
“At the end of this training, what we intend to achieve is to build the capacity of every participant for them to understand what a gender-responsive budget is all about. As we know, sexual and Gender-based violence has become a menace in our society. We actually want to see preventive measures to forestall future occurrences”.
Agbaje also pointed out the need for the Kogi State Government to immediately declare a state of emergency on Gender and Sexual Based Violence in the State.
She listed poor funding, poor awareness, and lack of Sexual Assault Referral Centre, (SARC) as some of the challenges confronting the implementation of VAPP laws in the State, adding that, the Government should be responsive in helping institutionalise the Law in Kogi State.
Earlier in her remarks, the Assistant program manager of FIDA, Ezinwa Obiajunwa admonished the Kogi State Government to gazette the VAPP law in Kogi State.
Obiajunwa said “The fight against Sexual and Gender Based Violence, (SGBV) has been a case of one step forward and ten steps back in the sense we have a lot of political will by the government to enact responding policies in the state. We have a lack of interest in adopting VAPP laws.
“Since the Governors in Nigeria declared a State of Emergency on Gender and Sexual Based Violence in 2020, that changed things. Many State Governors adopted the VAPP law and that has helped us a lot in trying to handle and respond to cases of sexual-based violence. But it is very unfortunate that the VAPP law has been adopted in Kogi State but has not been gazetted. If you already adopted a law, what is now the big deal to gazette it?
“Gazeting it will enable people to have access to it and know the law that is protecting them. It will also help in the testing of the law. If the law is gazetted in Kogi State and people are aware that this is what the provisions are, it increases reportage.
“It will make people know that there are offences when they want to seek redress. Kogi State VAPP law is very inclusive in the sense that it also provides a response mechanism, committee, and stakeholders that would handle sexual and Gender based violence issues. When people are sensitised on the provisions of the law, it will go a long way to help curb this societal menace”.
