Stakeholders have called for the establishment of Sexual Assault Referral Centres in frontline areas to check Conflict-Related Sexual Violence (CRSV) in Katsina State.
They made the call at the end of a one-day policy dialogue organised by the SPRiNG Programme in collaboration with Women, Peace and Security (WPS) in Katsina on Tuesday.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the dialogue was organised to commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict celebrated globally on June 19.
The dialogue, was held under the theme, “Recognising Conflict-Related Sexual Violence as a Tactic of War: Prevention, Accountability and Survivor Protection”.
The participants also called for laws to specifically recognise CRSV as an offence and the creation of a survivors’ rehabilitation fund and improved coordination among relevant institutions.
They called for specialised training for security personnel and frontline responders, as well as an in-depth study on the prevalence, causes and prevention of conflict-related sexual violence in Katsina State.
Participants observed that conflict-related sexual violence remained largely underreported despite the prevailing security challenges in the state, including banditry and kidnapping.
They identified weak prosecution of offenders, inadequate early warning and response systems, poor public awareness, limited documentation of cases and insufficient understanding of the root causes of CRSV as key challenges.
Earlier, Mr Lawal Alhassan of the Katsina State Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs, said conflict-related sexual violence remained a major threat to peace, security and sustainable development.
Alhassan, who also co-chairs the state’s Women, Peace and Security Technical Committee, stressed the need for stronger institutional collaboration to tackle the menace.
He described the recommendations from the dialogue as a practical roadmap for collective action, assuring that the ministry would continue to work with stakeholders to strengthen institutional responses and protect vulnerable groups across the state.
Also speaking, the Chairperson of the Katsina State Women, Peace and Security Working Group, Mrs Bilkisu Nasir-Yashe, described the dialogue as a major step towards strengthening collective efforts against CRSV.
She said preventing conflict-related sexual violence required coordinated action by government institutions, security agencies, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations and local communities.
According to her, stakeholders must translate the resolutions reached at the dialogue into measurable actions that will improve accountability, strengthen referral systems and ensure adequate support for survivors.
In her remarks, Hajara Abubakar of the Katsina State Ministry of Women Affairs, reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment to placing survivors at the centre of all interventions.
She said women and girls remained among the worst affected by conflicts, while many survivors continued to suffer in silence because of stigma, fear and limited access to support services.
Abubakar pledged that the ministry would continue to collaborate with relevant institutions and development partners to strengthen survivor support systems and advance the Women, Peace and Security agenda in the state.
NAN reports that the meeting brought together government officials, security agencies, justice and health institutions, civil society organisations, traditional and religious leaders, development partners and media practitioners.
The SPRiNG Programme is funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and implemented by Tetra Tech International in partnership with the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, Nextier, and the Centre for Democracy and Development across selected states in North-West and North-Central Nigeria.
