The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has solicited the collaboration of the media, government agencies and other stakeholders to end sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Nigeria.

The NAPTIP director-general, Binta Bello, solicited the collaboration at the opening of a two-day capacity-building workshop for 20 selected journalists and their inauguration into the SGBV Media Corps in Oyo State on Wednesday in Ibadan.

The workshop was organised by NAPTIP in collaboration with the European Union Support to End Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (ESGBV) Programme, implemented by International IDEA.

Ms Bello, represented by NAPTIP head of press and public relations, Vincent Adekoye, said SGBV remained one of the most common human rights violations in Nigeria.

She said the abuse cut across age, ethnicity and geography, affecting women, girls, boys and men and leaving long-lasting physical, psychological, social and economic scars.

The D-G said that many SGBV survivors don’t report it due to fear, stigmatisation, lack of trust in society or economic dependence on perpetrators.

“Ending SGBV demands a collective response from government, law enforcement, health and social services, education institutions, civil society, technology platforms and the media,” Ms Bello said.

“Journalists must raise awareness without sensationalising or re-traumatising survivors.

“Hold institutions and perpetrators accountable through rigorous, ethical reporting, inform the public about services, rights and avenues for assistance, and counter harmful narratives and stigma that keep survivors silent,” Ms Bello said.

Also speaking, Wynyfred Achu-Egbuson, civil society and community mobilisation specialist, ESGBV programme, International IDEA, said that the training aimed to strengthen public engagement on SGBV in the FCT and the states of Benue, Kaduna and Oyo.

Mrs Achu-Egbuson said that the training aimed at building a community of media practitioners who understand SGBV issues and report them accurately, ethically and with a survivor-centred approach.

In her remarks, the SGBV media lead facilitator, Toyin Adewale-Gabriel, said victims of SGBV were underreported in Nigeria.

Mrs Adewale-Gabriel said that the established SGBV Media Corps in Oyo State would help in accurate reporting of SGBV issues, focus on survivor-centred reporting and challenge cultural norms.

She said that most SGBV cases occurred in rural communities, adding that the media had a vital role to play in avoiding sensationalism and shifting blame from the survivor. 

(NAN)