31% Of Nigerian Women Suffer Sexual, Physical Violence – Minister

The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajia Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, on Wednesday, disclosed that about 31 per cent of Nigerian women, between the ages of 15 and 49 years, experienced physical violence.

This is just as the Minister also hinted that over 28 per cent of women across Nigeria have suffered a case of sexual violence at least once in their lifetime.

Hajia Sulaiman-Ibrahim emphatically stated that available statistics have shown the “stark reality” of Nigeria, notwithstanding some progress recorded in the fight against Gender Based Violence (GBV).

The Minister disclosed these in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, while speaking at the Sexual Assault Referral Centre in the state, where she had a stopover during a working visit she made to the state capital.

Hajia Sulaiman-Ibrahim was welcomed to the state by the Deputy Governor, Engr Noimot Salako—Oyedele, the First Lady, Mrs Bamidele Abiodun, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Hon. Motunrayo Adijat Adeleye, and other top female government functionaries.

Speaking further at the Centre, the Minister lamented that the figure was not just an ordinary statistic. Still, fellow citizens who “are daughters, sisters, mothers, and neighbours. Each number carries a human face and a human story”.

“They remind us that gender-based violence is not a private problem but a community crisis that undermines peace, family life, and development.”

The Minister said the statistics showed that major stakeholders must act urgently, with compassion and commitment.

She said that under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, her ministry has embedded the vision in the Social Impact Intervention Programmes designed to “restore dignity, expand opportunities, and strengthen families, ensuring that no woman, child, or vulnerable person is left behind.”

Also, the State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Adijat-Adeleye, explained that the Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) and the Women Development Centre were established because the state government believes that “healing must go hand in hand with rebuilding.”

Adeleye, a former House of Assembly member, said that beyond the centres, Ogun State has continued championing women and child protection through sensitisation walks, grassroots training, empowerment schemes, and child-focused programmes.

“At the SARC, survivors come in with pain, but they do not remain defined by it. Here, wounds are treated, tears are wiped, voices are restored, and shattered lives begin the journey to wholeness again.

“But as we reflected, we asked ourselves: what happens after the tears are wiped and the scars begin to heal? Survivors need more than just recovery; they need renewal. That is why we placed the Women’s Development Centre just a few steps away,” she said.

Adijat-Adeleye, however, called on the Federal Government to provide more funding for intervention projects, grassroots awareness, stronger policies, and wider programmes that ensure no survivor slips through the cracks.

“If Ogun State has lit the fire of protection and empowerment, we ask that the Federal Government pour more oil that makes the flame impossible to quench,” Adeleye said.