An international NGO, Secours Islamique France (SIF), has treated 281 Gender-Based Violence (GBV) cases in Zamfara under its project, Stabilisation and Resilience Building of Vulnerable Population in Zamfara.
The SIF Country Programme Manager, Amina Muhammad, disclosed this during a monthly dialogue meeting in Birnin Ruwa community, Gusau, on Monday – yesterday, February 10.
The dialogue was organised by SIF in collaboration with Life Helpers Initiative (LHI), with funding by the Crisis and Support Centre of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (CDCS) and implemented by SIF in partnership with LHI, according to Mohammed.
She explained that the one-year project was carried out in four local government areas: Gusau, Tsafe, Anka, and Talata Mafara, adding that the dialogue was aimed at enhancing peacebuilding across the state.
“This project has three major components: Livelihood, Protection—including GBV eradication—and Peacebuilding and Social Cohesion,” she said, pointing out that the project’s objective is to improve access to vocational skills and income generation.
“The project aims to protect women and children by improving GBV management.
“One of its objectives is contributing to peacebuilding and social cohesion through community dialogue,” she noted.
Muhammad disclosed that at least 281 GBV cases have been successfully treated since the project’s inception.
“GBV is a critical issue in peacebuilding because wherever there is GBV, there can be no peace,” she said, describing GBV as one of the root causes of domestic violence.
“Conflict resolution, peacebuilding, and GBV are interconnected, as GBV cannot be mitigated without conflict resolution initiatives,” she added, emphasizing that cases of rape require immediate action rather than dialogue, as they involve health and psychological trauma.
Dr Yakubu Lawali, the State Project Manager of LHI, assured that the project is achieving its goals in addressing GBV and local conflicts.
Explaining that SIF oversees the livelihood aspect, while LHI focuses on peacebuilding and social cohesion, Lawali added that the dialogue meetings help to identify local conflicts and ways to resolve them at the community level.
“So far, 192 conflict cases have been recorded across various communities, with 173 successfully resolved through dialogue,” he explained.
Earlier, a dialogue facilitator, Dr Aminu Idris, noted that many security challenges could be addressed at the community level through dialogue, pointing out that community leaders play a crucial role in tackling insecurity through dialogue.
He urged participants to embrace a community-based approach, describing it as the best solution to the state’s security challenges.
A participant, Aminu Mande from Hayin Malam Sani, praised the NGO for implementing the project.
“We have seen the impact of these dialogue meetings.
“We used community mobilisation to fight drug abuse and political thuggery in our area,” Mande said.
For his part, Malam Lawali Hashim, a community leader from Danbedi, noted that youth mobilisation and community-based approaches have helped tackle challenges in his community.
