The Federal Ministry of Women Affairs has lauded the commitment of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) in driving the process for a roadmap and call to action on gender-based violence (GBV) in the North-East.

Women affairs minister Pauline Tallen commended the UN agency on Tuesday in Maiduguri at a workshop organised by UNFPA to develop the Call to Action Initiative on protection from GBV in emergencies.

Ms Tallen also appreciated Denmark as the global chair of the Call to Action for the Development of North-East Nigeria Roadmap 2022-2025 with support from the Norwegian government.

According to the minister, the workshop is to develop a multi-year North-East Roadmap to ensure effective coordination and support for field-level activities of relevant stakeholders in implementing the call to action.

The workshop would enable “us to generate a comprehensive, lifesaving and impactful roadmap to consolidate on the successes recorded in the implementation of the 2018-2019 roadmap,” she explained.

Ms Tallen added, “The strength of the call to action lies in the power of collective action and the shared commitment of diverse stakeholders. The success of the call to action will ultimately be determined by the crisis-affected women, girls, families and communities who are safer because GBV is addressed in partnership with them from the start of the humanitarian response to the restoration of peace and development.”

The commissioner for women’s affairs in Borno, Zuwaira Gambo, said to address the prevalence of GBV, the state government, in partnership with the humanitarian community, established the GBV Sub-Sector Working Group that plays a key role in GBV risk mitigation response.

Ms Gambo said Borno passed the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act to ensure absolute accountability on the sexual violence front in Borno.

Fatima Waziri-Azi, the director-general of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), also lauded UNFPA for pioneering the dialogue and intervention programmes toward reducing the suffering of victims of GBV in the North-East.

(NAN)