Kaduna stakeholders seek action against gender-based violence

Stakeholders drawn from government institutions, traditional councils, civil society organisations, and the media on Wednesday converged in Kaduna to develop strategies for addressing gender-based violence in the North-West.

The dialogue, organised by the Centre for Information Technology and Development, brought together participants to deliberate on practical solutions to curb the menace, which organisers said continues to affect communities despite existing laws.

Speaking at the Male Feminist State-Level Dialogue on gender-based violence, a representative of the organisation, Kamal Garba-Hassan, said the initiative was designed to move beyond rhetoric and focus on actionable strategies to reduce cases of abuse.

He said, “The purpose of this programme is what we call a state-level dialogue on gender-based violence. We are bringing together stakeholders from different sectors—community leaders, traditional rulers, civil society organisations, NGOs, and the media—to discuss the issue and find solutions.

“It is not just about asking what happened. The focus is on how we are going to resolve the issue and minimise it to a certain level. It is not something that can be addressed in a day, but we can develop solutions that people will understand and accept.”

Garba-Hassan explained that the project was being implemented across the country on a regional basis, with the current phase focusing on the North-West.

According to him, “This project is being conducted across the country, region by region. We are representing the North-West, which has seven states, but we are working in three—Jigawa State, Kaduna State, and Kano State.

“We were in Jigawa yesterday for the same dialogue, we are in Kaduna today, and next week we will be in Kano.”

He identified weak enforcement of existing laws as one of the major drivers of gender-based violence, noting that while legal frameworks exist, implementation remains inadequate.

“There are laws in place, but the challenge is in the enforcement. Law enforcement agencies, including the police and civil defence, as well as the judiciary, are working, but there are still issues when it comes to punishing perpetrators,” he said.

Garba-Hassan also attributed the persistence of the problem to socio-economic challenges and declining societal values.

“Some people point to economic issues, while others point to character. If you have a daughter and someone harasses her, how would you feel? People should not go and harass other people’s daughters, sisters, or mothers. That lack of empathy is part of the problem,” he added.

On the way forward, he stressed the need for strict and impartial enforcement of the law, warning against interference by influential individuals.

“The solution is to strengthen enforcement. There must be no partiality. Everyone must be equal before the law, whether you are a governor, an emir, or a religious leader.

“If anyone commits an offence, there should be no interference. The law must be allowed to take its full course so that people can live in a peaceful society,” he said.

A participant, Sarah Shekari, called for stronger institutions, improved policy enforcement, and sustained collaboration among stakeholders to address rising cases of gender-based violence in Nigeria.

She described the intervention as timely, noting that urgent collective action was required to confront the menace.

“This programme came so timely because it is very important that we rise up against violence against gender, especially women. Violence happens to both men and women, but studies have shown that over 90 per cent of victims are women,” she said.

She added that different forms of abuse continue to emerge across society, including sexual, physical, emotional, economic, and digital violence.

“You have sexual violence, which is also physical. You have emotional violence, economic violence, and even online or data violence. These are different forms of violence we are dealing with,” she said.

Participants expressed optimism that sustained engagement among stakeholders would help reduce cases of gender-based violence and improve accountability across affected communities.