BY AHMED AKANBI
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has called for stronger collaboration among government institutions, civil society organisations, development partners and the media to curb sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Nigeria.
The agency also raised the alarm that sexual violence is increasingly shifting to the digital space, with perpetrators exploiting technology to commit abuse.
NAPTIP’s Head of Press and Public Relations, Mr Vincent Adekoye, made the call at the weekend during the SGBV Media Corps Workshop in Abuja.
The workshop was organised by NAPTIP, under the European Union-supported Programme to End Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Nigeria, and implemented by International IDEA.
It targets improved public engagement on SGBV in the FCT, Benue, Kaduna, and Oyo states through better media and community-based communication.
Adekoye said the training is designed to shift SGBV reporting from sensationalist and fragmented coverage to a professional, survivor-centred, evidence-based and action-oriented approach.
According to him, the goal is to promote prevention, expand access to trusted information, strengthen referral pathways, and support positive social norm change.
The workshop also aims to enhance community-level information-sharing structures for SGBV prevention and response, including issues around technology-facilitated gender-based violence, TF-SGBV.
Adekoye noted that although 34 states have domesticated the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act, effective implementation remains a major challenge.
He urged stakeholders to work together to ensure the law is fully enforced and offenders are brought to justice, stressing that collaboration is key to ending SGBV in Nigeria.
