Women’s Rights and Health Project (WRAHP) has trained 18 women’s rights advocates, community leaders and key representatives from Alimosho, Ojo and Oshodi/Isolo LGA as frontline responders to Social and Gender Base Violence (SGBV).
The Executive Director, Bose Ironsi disclosed this in Lagos on Thursday.
Ironsi said that
Nigeria remains a patriarchal society with men exercising authority over females in different spheres of life such as politics, economic, and even sexuality.
She said this gender inequality has continued to place women and girls in a disadvantaged position of subordination and was a major driving force in the high incidence of SGBV experienced by women and girls in Nigeria.
“According to the UN World Population Prospects report (2019), the percentage of females in the world is estimated at 49.58% (3.905 billion) of the world population.
“In Nigeria, 49.3 percent of Nigeria’s population are females.
Over the years, women and girls have continued to be at the receiving end for gender-based violence in Nigeria.
“According to the 2018 National Demographic Health Survey (NDHS), 33 per cent of women age 15-49 in Nigeria have experienced physical or sexual violence; 24 per cent have experienced only physical violence, 2 per cent have experienced only sexual violence, while 7 per cent have experienced both physical and sexual violence” she said
Ironsi said that WRAHP, through its Ireti Resource Centre, was pleased to announce the launch of our project titled “Scaling up Access to Justice-Related Social Services for Women and Girls Survivors of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Lagos and Edo States.”
She said this project, supported by the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption Programme (RoLAC II) was dedicated to enhancing survivors’ access to justice and psychosocial support while strengthening the response capacity of community structures.
She said that the impact of this change on survivours would be an enhanced sense of, personal security and equity before the law, motivating them to seek justice for violations against them.
She said the two days training, would bring together community leaders, women’s rights advocates, and key representatives from Local Government Areas of Alimosho, Ojo, and Oshodi/Isolo.
Ironsi said thetraining aims to empower these local structures as frontline responders to SGBV, equipping them with skills to act effectively as case managers, mandatory reporters, and advocates for survivors in their communities.
She said that the initiative marks a significant step in their commitment to breaking the cycle of silence surrounding SGBV and believed that with stronger community structures, they could build safer environments for women and girls and ensured that survivors receive timely access to justice and holistic support.
A participant, Mr Yusuf Adewale said that he really learned a lot in the two days programme.
Adewale said that it was not just for us to be very careful with our children and community but take proper care of our children.
He said that both male and female are involved that it has come to his notice that a male child should not be left out but protect them as well.
