Nov. 29, 2023

The Federal government says efforts are on to develop standard operating procedures to create a legal pathway for the prosecution of school-related Gender-based violence.

Mr. Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, said this on Tuesday night in Abuja at the national close-out/ handover ceremony of the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative project organised by the United Nations to end violence against women and girls in Nigeria.

The Spotlight Initiative was established in Nigeria to tackle widespread of GBV and other harmful traditional practices in the country.

This, the minister said is to combat the growing rate of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, SGBV, in the country.

“The ministry has been a beneficiary of numerous programmes under the EU/UN spotlight initiatives, in partnership with the UN Women, UNESCO, UNICEF, UNDP.

“These are programmes centered on criminal justice actions at the Federal and spotlight States. The ministry will be launching the SoP for prosecution of GBV.

“It is funded by UNESCO under the EU/UN Spotlight Initiative; the SoP is targeted at determining and responding to GVB when it occurs in our schools.

“This initiative propels further collaboration with key ministries of Women Affairs and Justice, to give rise to more robust-real-time and readily available pattern for solution room.”

He mentioned that situation room would be situated at the Ministry of Women Affairs and the Ministry of Justice respectively.

Also speaking, Sen. Abubakar Bagudu, Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, represented by Mr. Lanre Adekanya, Director of International Cooperation at the ministry., commended the initiative to have been apt in tackling GBV.

“From the implementation of Spotlight Initiative reports in Nigeria it is clear that significant milestones have been achieved with the success stories hinged on commitment of stakeholders.

“It is important that the national stakeholders sustain the outcome by mainstreaming its activities to other strategic and operational plans.

“Given that women and girls are agents of change in any developing nation, I assure you the ministry will leave no stone unturned in supporting similar programmes sustain impacts of Spotlight Initiative in Nigeria,” Bagudu said.

Also Dr. Haliru Ndanusa, Emir of Shonga, Deputy Conveyor-General of the Council of Traditional Leaders in Africa (COTLA) described the initiative as the most substantial commitment by EU/UN in tackling Sexual-GBV (SGBV).

“SGBV remains the most widespread human rights violations impacting our society socioeconomic development and conflicting the values of human dignity and sanctity in our communities.

“In recognising the sociocultural harms of SGBV, we as custodians of culture and traditions have ethically worked to transform practices related to violence.

“We express immense satisfaction at Spotlight Initiative fostering a movement of ethical group in tackling SGBV, we will actively sustain the achievements of the initiative,” Ndanusa said.

In separate remarks, Mr. Mathias Schmale, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, said the initiative focused on GBV in relation to collective efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda in the SDGs.

Schmale said, “Since the beginning of the Spotlight Initiative in Nigeria in 2019 , we have made tangible difference in the lives of many in Nigeria.

“It has enabled more than 60,500 women and girls receive worthy services. It made allies of traditional leaders, enhanced data collection and galvanization in changing mindsets and changing lives.”

He reiterated that there is the need to secure commitments from governments and relevant stakeholders to safeguard the progress of the Spotlight Initiative.

For her part, Amb. Samuela Isopi, EU Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, described the initiative as the world’s largest efforts and investments to fights against GBV.

“EU launched it in 2018 together with the UN ,it is funded with the global investment of €500 million Euros, because we are convinced that this is what is necessary to make transformative change.

“Out of this €500 million Euros 25 has been allocated to support fights against GBV in Nigeria; in Nigeria the programme has tasted new holistic approach that brought all actors together.

“This has allowed us achieve resounding results, a record number of 35 States of the Federation have passed the VAPP Act into Law making it fastest Bill passed in Nigeria,” she said.

Highpoint of the event was a video documentary on Spotlight Initiative results and impacts, stage performance on SGBV, discussion on Spotlight Initiative, official declaration of the project “closed” and handing over. (NAN)