EU partners Lagos on data collection for gender-based violence

EU partners Lagos on data collection for gender-based violence

The European Union (EU) through its Spotlight Initiative has partnered with the Lagos State Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA) to organise a one-day data collection and referral tools program for monitoring state level activities on gender-based violence (GBV).

Director of the Ministry’s domestic violence unit, Mrs Olorunfemi Oluwatoyin, explained the program was in line with the Federal Government’s national dashboard for Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and state governments to report gender-based issues across the country.

Oluwatoyin urged the participants to familiarise themselves with the dashboard and always report any issue handled.

Speaking on the role of CSOs in monitoring and tracking in the fight against GBV, one of the facilitators, Mrs Tinuke Odukoya, lamented good data on GBV does not exist anywhere in the world.

Odukoya noted the data available belies the magnitude of the challenge, explaining it is one of the core reasons monitoring and tracking are imperative.

“Why should we be putting so much resources in fighting GBV if there are no figures available to measure what we do?

“There is the need for synergy among all stakeholders, that is, the government agencies and CSOs,” she said.

Technical Specialist, United Nations (UN) Women Spotlight initiative, Tosin Akibu expressed optimism that the program will go a long way to change the narrative and activate a paradigm shift from what had been obtainable.