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The National President of the International Federation of Women Lawyers, Mrs Amina Agbaje, has enlisted the support of religious leaders in taming the increasing violence against women and girls in Nigeria through effective strategies.
Agbaje spoke in a message to the two-day annual dialogue on GBV with the theme, “Engagement, coordination and sharing of lessons on GBV prevention between religious, traditional and government leaders in Nigeria”, organised by FIDA, Ekiti State Chapter in partnership with Ford Foundation in Ado Ekiti on Friday.
The FIDA national president said, “The escalating violence against women and girls in Nigeria is fueled by a complex interplay of faith, culture, economic, political, historical and other social factors, discriminatory traditions and societal norms”.
Agbaje, who said that a plan of action in preventing GBV occurrences in the places of worship was expected at the end of the dialogue, charged religious leaders to “serve as change agents and advocates of women and girls rights, abdicate social norms and beliefs of their members through effective messaging and campaigns through workable strategies”.
FIDA Chairperson in Ekiti State, Oyinade Olatunbosun, who sought religious leaders’ involvement in ensuring GBV was prevented from occurring in churches and mosques in the state, stressed the need for collective attention and advocacy to end the scourge.
Olatunbosun said, “Religious leaders have critical roles to play in prevention of occurrence of GBV. They can, through their platforms and influential positions in shaping opinions, help raise awareness about all forms of domestic violence against women and girls.”
The FIDA chairperson, who said the yearly dialogue was supported by the Ford Foundation to strategise with the religious leaders on how to curtail the factors that promote GBV in Ekiti State, said, “The dialogue is necessary as most cases of GBV against women and girls are being shielded based on cultural and religious factors.”
The Coordinator of the Ford Foundation Project at FIDA Nigeria, Rita Abba, said the dialogue was aimed at identifying factors promoting GBV and providing religious leaders with relevant skills and knowledge to become advocates for change.
Abba, who lamented the the increasing cases of GBV in society, said the ugly trend in the violence required increased efforts from all stakeholders including religious leaders, traditional rulers, civil societies and the general public to checkmate it.
She said, “We have changed our tactics, we are now coming from the angle of prevention. We believe if there is a change in mindset, if people are educated, if people are aware, if people are enlightened and if everybody is doing their part, it will go a long way to change general behaviour across our communities which will give us that long-term goal of ending and mitigating GBV.”
The State Chairman, the Christian Association of Nigeria, Rev. Emmanuel Aribasoye, represented by Rotimi Oluwatusin, and the representative of Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs in Ekiti State, Alhaji Ahmed Bakare, who spoke in their goodwill messages, said the dialogue was yet another forum for better understanding in how to prevent GBV in the places of worship.
