The Benue Government has urged trained social workers and frontline caregivers to take Gender-Based Violence (GBV) awareness to all 276 wards across the state.
The government said the aim is to strengthen protection for vulnerable women, children and other persons.
The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Mrs Theresa Ikwue, made the call at the close of a five-day capacity-building workshop on GBV case management which began on Monday in Makurdi.
Ikwue urged participants of the workshop organised in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Royal Heritage Health Foundation (RHHF) to ensure that the knowledge gained from the workshop reached every community in the state.
The commissioner said the ministry’s goal was to protect vulnerable women, children and men by spreading awareness against GBV through coordinated community action.
She expressed concern over the rising cases of sexual and gender-based violence in the state, revealing that two fresh cases had been recorded in Zone C.
Ikwue said one case involved the alleged rape of a 13-year-old girl by her stepfather, while another involved the abuse of a three-month-old baby.
The commissioner stated that the incidents underscored the urgent need for trained personnel to respond professionally and support survivors.
She urged participants to apply the knowledge acquired during the workshop instead of allowing it to remain theoretical.
According to her, participants should form networks, mentor grassroots volunteers and use digital platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook to extend awareness to communities.
Ikwue disclosed that the ministry had recruited 552 volunteer social workers serving as desk officers, many of whom were already reporting abuse cases from across the state.
The commissioner added that the volunteers would be linked with the newly trained participants to strengthen child protection and GBV response mechanisms.
She commended Gov. Hyacinth Alia for creating the enabling environment for the organisers and partners for supporting the programme and providing an enabling environment for capacity development.
The Director-General of the Bureau for International Cooperation and Development (BICD), Mr Leonard Viashima, described the training as impactful.
Viashima said conversations on GBV were still inadequate, adding that there was every need for sustained awareness to improve public understanding and reduce the incidence of violence.
He said the training had equipped government actors with the knowledge and skills required to drive conversations on GBV and improve responses to survivors.
According to him, most participants are social workers who serve as first-line caregivers and are expected to become more gender-sensitive in carrying out their responsibilities.
“This training has been a huge learning opportunity for government participants.
“We hope it will improve workplace attitudes and make caregivers more sensitive to gender issues while delivering services,” he said.
A participant, Mrs Doofan Ibya, commended the UNPFA and RHHF for the timely training for frontline caregivers.
Ibya, who is staff of the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare, said with training her capacity was built on how to handle GBV cases and early marriage issues.
Another participant, Mr Boniface Tyohuna, Principal Social Welfare Officer, Ministry of Women Affairs, said that training equipped them to handle cases differently.
“For GBV cases, we understood that there are guiding principles that we must follow, and we must not act based on our own assumptions.
