YAF Sensitizes Lagosians On Laws Protecting Women/Girls Against Violence, Exploitation

Youth Alive Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) has sensitized traditional rulers, their subjects, market women and men in the Makoko community of Lagos State on the existing law which they can leverage to fight violence against women and the girl child.

Speaking at the event yesterday, Feyikemi Fabiyi Omoniyi, the Programme Officer of Youth Alive Foundation disclosed that the programme was a community sensitization and town hall meeting sponsored by Commonwealth Foundation, through Youth Alive Foundation.

She said, “We partnered with different organizations and NGOs. We call it Safeguarding Against Violence and Exploitation of Women and Girls in Lagos, and the reason is that there is a Law called VAPP, Violence Against Person Prohibition Act 2015, which has been domesticated at the national level.

“We want to reach out to legislators, government and stakeholders in Lagos State. Through our advocacy Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency was created, and through that, a law was domesticated in 2021, called Domestic and Sexual Violence Law, the law is still in existence to protect women and girls from all sorts of violence and exploitation.

“We are currently doing community sensitization, through roadwork and town hall meetings. We’ve covered Ikorodu and Alimosho, and today we are in Makoko, Yaba axis, to sensitize the community on the provision that the law has made for us, so that they’re enlightened, and not die in silence.

Omoniyi added, “We encourage them to report any form of violence, be it gender-based or domestic violence so that the government can prosecute perpetrators.

Oluwakemi Awoniyi, a member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), and member International Association of Women Lawyers, Lagos State Branch, in her remark, said, “We are here for sensitization on the protection against exploitation of women and girls in the society, especially in Makoko community. We hold this sensitization to inform them about their rights and also for the men in the society to guide against exploiting women.”

Awoniyi noted that violence and exploitation of women and girls entail so many things and they bring about factors that affect the economic and social responsibilities of women and girls in society.

“Exploitation could be in the form that the man is actually having domestic abuse on the woman, bringing economic hardship on the woman or on the children.

“There’s a form of exploitation, where a parent abuses children physically, financially and economically, where the man doesn’t care for the children. It’ll boil down on him to come and explain the reason he’s not taking care of his children,” she said.