The Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Paulen Tallen, has advocated stiffer penalties against perpetrators of Gender Based Violence (GBV) in the country.
She made the call at an interactive session on Gender Based Violence (GBV) with journalists by UN Population Fund (UNFPA) in Abuja on Thursday.
Tallen, who was represented by Mrs Funke Oladipo, the Director, Women and Gender Affairs, Ministry of Women Affairs, said Nigerian women were demanding for capital punishment for perpetrators of GBV.
She said only stiffer penalties would put an end to the incessant bestial attitude of some men against women.
According to her, rape is on the increase and the appropriate measure to check it is through capital punishment.
She commended the UNFPA and other stakeholders for their committed efforts in addressing the challenge, especially in the North East.
Ms Christie Apio of UNFPA restated the commitment of the fund in addressing challenges associated with GBV and outlined the roadmap as “Call to Action”, which she said had priorities of strengthening coordination with major actors in the North East.
She said that UNFPA’s “Call to Action” also had priorities of ensuring access quality services, as well as strengthening and expanding capacity and engagement with local partners.
According to her, funding is imperative, sufficient resources secured through strengthened leadership coordination and advocacy.
Dr Mathew Onoja, also of UNFPA, explained that there had been tremendous success so far in addressing the challenges of GBV.
Onoja said that the success was achieved with partnership of about 44 states and donors who were also determined to help to mitigate the challenges.
The UNFPA “Call to Action” is an initiative designed to transform the way humanitarian actors address GBV emergencies.
The pilot programme for Nigeria begun in 2017 and subsequently in DR Congo.
