The Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development has initiated its annual campaign against Gender-Based Violence (GBV), marking the beginning of 16 Days of Activism, a global movement to combat violence against women and girls.
Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, launched the campaign in Abuja on Thursday, emphasizing the urgent need to address GBV issues in Nigeria.
“Gender-Based Violence (GBV) remains a hydra-headed monster affecting millions of women, children and marginalised communities in Nigeria,” the minister stated during the launch.
The campaign, running from November 25 (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) to December 10 (Human Rights Day), aligns with the United Nations’ theme “UNITE! Invest to Prevent Violence against Women and Girls.”
Highlighting the severity of the situation, Mrs. Sulaiman-Ibrahim revealed that GBV cases witnessed a dramatic increase during the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting the government to declare a state of emergency.
According to the Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), spousal violence rates rose from 25 percent to 36 percent between 2013 and 2018, while sexual violence against women aged 15-49 escalated from 36.9 percent to 44.9 percent.
The ministry has planned various activities including town hall meetings with women groups, GBV awareness rallies across six geo-political zones in collaboration with the Office of the First Lady, nationwide campaigns featuring Helium Balloon releases, and interdenominational prayers in mosques and churches nationwide.
“The campaign calls on citizens to show how much they care about ending violence against women and girls by sharing the actions they are taking to create a world free from violence towards women,” according to UN Women’s website.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the UN General Assembly’s designation of November 25 as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, commemorating the Mirabal sisters’ assassination on November 25, 1960.
Civil society organizations, including the #StateofEmergencyGBV Movement and the Federation of Muslim Women Association in Nigeria (FOMWAN), have expressed concern over increasing GBV cases, noting various forms of violence from deprivation to sexual assault, physical violence, emotional abuse, cyber-attacks, female genital mutilation, and child marriage.
The minister emphasized that the campaign’s efforts would continue beyond the designated period, calling for collaboration among Nigerian women, NGOs, and private sector organizations to create a comprehensive approach to combating gender-based violence.
The initiative builds on the UN Secretary-General’s 2008 campaign ‘UNITE by 2030’ to End Violence against Women, which runs parallel to the 16 Days of Activism, originally launched by activists at the Women’s Global Leadership Institute in 1991.