The United Nations (UN) has commended the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) for its multisectoral approach to ending all forms of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) in the Territory.
Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Violence against Children, Dr Najat M’jid, gave the commendation in Abuja on Tuesday when she visited the Awyetu Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC).
The SARC, located at Bwari General Hospital in FCT, was established in 2020 by the British Council on behalf of the European Union under its Rule of Law and Anticorruption (ROLAC) Programme.
The centre was established to provide comprehensive medical, psychological, and legal support to survivors of sexual violence, with a special focus on children and vulnerable populations.
M’jid expressed excitement with the synergy among the different sectors working together to eliminate all forms of SGBV in the FCT.
“I am happy today because of what I have seen – many ministries are onboard supporting the fight against SGBV.
“This is because the problem is not only the problem of FCT Women Affairs; the issues are also in health, in Justice, and in communities,” she said.
She stated that she was in Nigeria to understand what was being done to address SGBV and “how together, we can move forward.”
She added that Nigeria was one of the paths finding countries on ending violence against children.
She also said that the country was very involved and very committed to end all forms of violence against children and had made pledges.
“Visit to Nigeria is to see how we can move ahead, how we can support and how we can achieve set targets from the many commitments the country has made.
“We want to see how we can translate those commitments into concrete services that will prevent and address all forms of violence against children,” she said.
The special representative, however, stressed the need to address the drivers of SGBV, detect and respond to reported cases and ensure that it was not happening again.
She further said: “It is really important to make sure that the victims can be heard, be considered and be seen as victims and make the perpetrators accountable.
“There is also the need to stop justifying violence against children and women through poverty and through social norms”.
Earlier, the Mandate Secretary, FCT Women Affairs Secretariat, Mrs Adebayo Benjamins-Laniyi, pointed out that a multisectoral problem required a multisectoral approach to tackle it.
Benjamins-Laniyi said that a stronger synergy was required among critical stakeholders to deliver critical intervention from the local to the state level, in line with global best practices.
She described M’jid visit as a “positive disruption” that sparked a desire to strengthen partnership and collaboration among the different stakeholders to do more for women and children in the FCT.
The mandate secretary said that the FCT Administration had rolled out plans to reposition the SARC centre to provide quality integrated services to SGBV survivors.
Also, the Mandate Secretary, Health Services and Environment Secretariat, Dr Adedolapo Fasawe, said that M’jid’s visit reaffirmed the global resolve to protect children from violence.
Fasawe, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the secretariat, Dr Baba-Gana Adam, added that the visit was very encouraging.
She added that the visit also reinforced the role of sexual assault centre in ensuring access to care, justice, and dignity for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence.
She disclosed that the hospital had continued to sustain the provision of services at the centre when the ROLAC support ended, but amidst numerous challenges.
The mandate secretary identified some of the challenges as funding for essential drugs and kits, staff training and incentives, inconsistent collaboration with law enforcements, and absence of prevention and community awareness programmes.
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