Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN) has called for additional framework from stakeholders to help curb violence against women in the country.
Malami made this call on Friday in Abuja at a one-day seminar to commemorate the 2016 International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women.
The seminar is jointly organised by Federal Ministry of Justice and Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women is marked annually on November 25.
The theme of the seminar is: “The Impact of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act 2015 and Others Legislation on the Elimination of Violence Against Women.”
Represented by Tahir Hamza, the Director of Legal Drafting, Malami said that putting up legal framework was the first step in addressing the discrimination against women and child abuse.
He said that gender equality remained a persistent challenge for countries worldwide and lack of such equality was a major obstacle to sustainable development in the country.
Malami said: “In Nigeria in general and as a ministry in particular, we agree that assuring women’s rights through legal frameworks is a first step in addressing discrimination against them.
“As of 2014, 143 countries, including Nigeria guaranteed equality between men and women in their constitutions.
“Nigeria domesticated the Child Rights Act in 2003 and it has been adopted in a number of states.
“The passage of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act, 2015 shows the commitment of the Nigerian government to sustainable elimination of all forms of discrimination and violence against women and girls.’’
The Attorney-General of Kebbi State, Rakiya Tanko, said that due to the stigma and silence surrounding the issue of violence, it was difficult to obtain data on violence against women in Nigeria.
According to her, a large number of women in Nigeria experienced physical violence which is a significant number in a country of almost 200 million of people where almost half are women.
She added that laws existed to prevent women against violence but implementation of these laws was the major problem confronting the country.
Tanko however called on stakeholders present at the seminar to pursue the reviews of its activities targeted at eliminating violence against women in order to take stock of successes and challenges so far.
The Minister of Women Affairs, Senator Aisha Alhassan also identified the incident of rape, saying it had increased in the recent times and had affected a cross section of the womenfolk ranging from children as early as six months to the elderly.
Alhassan said: “Violence against women whether in war time or at peace time is harmful to our national development and that it is a phenomenon that exhibited the capacity of eroding women’s ability to participate normally in social and economic life.
“Violence against women and girl is an unacceptable reality which needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency. It is among the most potent obstacles to the advancement of women and is a fundamental violation of their basic human rights.
“It is believed that the adoption and implementation of VAPP Act 2015 in all states of the federation and FCT will help curb the incidence of gender based violence.
“The ministry is supporting all efforts to popularise, adopt and implement the act. In this regard, a National Technical Committee has been established with a clear terms of reference with a view to kick-start the implementation.’’
The United Nations Women Deputy Country Director, Adjaratou Ndiaye, identified a substantial funding shortfall as one of the major challenges to effectively prevent violence against women.
According to Ndiaye, in order to bring this issue to the fore, the UN Secretary-General has called for 16 days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence in 2016 tagged: “Orange the World: Raise Money to end Violence against Women and Girls’’.
Ndiaye said that this initiative would provide a moment to bring the issue of sustainable financing to prevent and end violence against women to global prominence and would present the opportunity for resource mobilisation.
Ndiaye said: “It is therefore laudable that the launch of the 16 days of activism against gender based violence is taking place in partnership with the ministry of justice and the ministry of women affair.
“This has critical role to play to ensure victims and survivors of violence have their rights protected.
“UN women want also to take this opportunity to reaffirm our strong commitment to work with all stakeholders to end this pandemic.
“Specially the health, the police and judiciary; those institutions that are at the forefront of the protection of the rights of women and girls victims and survivors of violence.”
NAN reports that the programme featured discussants on different topics in relation to violence against women such as religion, culture, societal norms and the role of law enforcement agencies.
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