We want radical reduction in violence against women and girls – FG
The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajia Aisha Jummai Allhassan has said the Federal government has accelerated efforts to ensure a radical reduction in the incidence of violence against women and girls.
She said the Ministry is currently supporting the development of a multi-sectored coordination and response mechanism at the National, States and Local Government levels to facilitate this.
Hajia Allhassan was speaking in Abuja on Saturday at a press briefing to commemorate the International campaign to end violence against women and girls with the theme: “Together we can end gender based violence in education” and sub theme, “Leave no one behind”.
She said: “The development of sexual assault referral centers (SARC) across the country is being executed to provide redress for survivors of gender based violence.
“In the same vein, advocacy and capacity building have been employed extensively as strategies to address the high prevalence of female genital mutilation in the country”.
The Minister who said it is expected that the sustained engagement of men and boys through the ‘He for She’ campaign to support interventions directed at promoting gender equity added that; “it will contribute immensely to the reduction of gender based violence”.
Hajia Aisha further said that eliminating gender based violence and indeed, curbing the rampant occurrences of this act in all situations, should be seen as the responsibility of all citizens adding, “no one should be left behind”.
In his remarks, the United Nations Secretary General represented by the UN Resident coordinator in Nigeria, Mr. Edward Kallon Kallon said it is a human right we need to support.
“No man should batter a woman; to batter someone you love is extra ordinary as we need to celebrate the woman, placing more importance to her as what a man can do, a woman can do even better.
“One among every three women are violated over the world; violence on women is a challenge to the UN and we need to end violence against women and girls”, adding that the UN is advertizing this act in many ways so, we need to do more to protect our women and girls also to empower them”.
In her reaction, the United Nations Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Ms. Comfort Lamptey said United Nations women lead to light the world in Orange as the world unite against women and Nigeria is doing same today saying; “about 105 countries participated with Nigeria, leave no one behind”.
“Approximately, almost half of Nigeria girls are forced into early marriage, sexual harassment, genital mutilations and child trafficking which must stop”, she added.
Tom Okpe Abuja
