The United Nations Women, in partnership with the Women at Risk International Foundation (WARIF), on Thursday staged a house-to-house sensitisation walk to end Gender-Based Violence (GBV) at Elenusonso Community, Ibadan.
The sensitisation walk, under the UN LEAP Project, involved community members and leaders in Elenusonso, Ido Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The Programme Officer of WARIF, Mr Adeniyi Adetola, said the programme targeted sustaining campaigns to end GBV, as statistics showed that one in three women end up being abused.
According to him, stakeholders, such as UN Women, the Oyo State Government and community leaders, are working together to ensure members of the community say “No to GBV”.
Adetola said the effort aimed to reaffirm the commitments of the Public Declaration of June 14 and ensure every household understood its role in promoting a safer and more inclusive Elenusonso.
“We need to find a sustainability plan for this project; hence, we want to carry along all the community members.
“The sensitisation walk is to ensure that nobody is left behind. We want to carry everybody along to end GBV in this community,” Adetola said.
Mr Ogunjimi Diya, the Director, Women Programme, Oyo State Ministry of Women Affairs, commended the partners for the initiative.
He underscored the need for continuous education to end and mitigate issues of GVB, such as rape, female genital mutilation, and intimate partner violence, among others.
Diya noted that GBV was rampant in many communities in Oyo State, adding that the sensitisation would serve as an eye-opener for members of the community to prevent GBV.
“We believe GBV is a developmental issue, and when people are enlightened, they will be able to synergise and dedicate their energies towards the development of their homes and the community at large,” Diya said.
He stated that lack of education has been a major factor sustaining GBV, thus leading to ego and the lack of mutual respect.
The Chairman, Ido Local Government Area, Hon. Aderemi Adeojo, represented by the Community Development Officer, Mrs Oluwadunni Hassan, appreciated the initiative’s drive to reduce the spate of GBV.
“We want the issue of GBV to stop; we don’t want it in our community again.
“Men should stop beating their wives and girls. They should empower them by allowing them to go to school and do whatever vocation they desire,” Hassan said.
Mr Adebayo Babajide, the Community Leader and Central Chairman, Ifesowapo Landlords and Landladies Association, Elenusonso Community and Environs, said the sensitisation was highly necessary in the community.
Babajide commended the organisers, saying that it has enlightened the people and awakened the spirit of oneness in some.
“It has opened the eyes of members in the community and educated them against their various nefarious activities,” he said.
Another community member, Mrs Monsurat Ayansola, said the programme would help champion the cause of women such that they would not die in silence.
“In times past, women had nowhere to run to for help whenever they were being abused, but this initiative has brought hope to women’s plights,” she said.
