Experts Seek Policy On Sexual Harassment In Tertiary Institutions

Experts in the media sector have united to address the pervasive issue of sexual harassment in tertiary institutions.

The collaboration follows a one-day residential consultation organised by Alliances for Africa (AfA) and Co-Impact in Abuja, during which editors from across Nigeria demanded a policy on sexual harassment in Nigerian tertiary institutions.

The editors noted that sexual harassment in Nigerian tertiary institutions has become widespread, leading to severe immediate and long-term repercussions for victims, staff and the institutions themselves.
They also examined existing reporting mechanisms and understood the challenges faced by journalists in covering these incidents.

The media practitioners made key observations, including that sexual harassment remains prevalent and significantly underreported and that gender unit heads in most institutions lack proper training and understanding of their roles.

They also observed that survivors and reporters of sexual harassment face retaliation without adequate protection and that institutional committees addressing harassment are often male-dominated and inefficient.

According to the editors, media houses often lack the resources to investigate harassment cases thoroughly, including national and local policies on sexual harassment being inconsistently enforced as well as harassment, which damages the reputation of institutions and impacts the wider community.

Going forward, the editors, in a communique issued at the end of the meeting, resolved that tertiary institutions should form committees to assess the qualifications of gender unit heads, ensuring they are suitably trained, and AfA should engage with mainstream media houses regularly.

The communique signed by the executive director of Alliances for Africa, Iheoma Obibi, reads that media involvement should be progressive when civil society organisations receive reports of harassment, including collaboration to share story ideas with peers.

The editors equally recommended that the “HeForShe Campaign” encourage males to support women’s rights in initiatives to combat harassment and advance female leaders in higher education.

Other recommendations the editors made include using social media and the media to promote the anti-sexual harassment bill’s passing, using the campaign to hold media companies responsible for their corporate social duties and establish accountability benchmarks, and recording and disseminating yearly reports on harassment instances.

The communique reads in part, “Give journalists continuous instruction on how to report on and investigate harassment situations properly.

“We call upon all stakeholders, including media houses, administrators of tertiary institutions, faculty staff, students, government agencies, regulatory agencies, civil society organisations, and religious and traditional institutions, to join us in this collective effort to eradicate sexual harassment from Nigerian tertiary institutions.

“We urge government agencies and other relevant bodies to provide the necessary support and resources to ensure the successful implementation of these resolutions.”