The First Lady of Ekiti State, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, has reiterated the Governor Kayode Fayemi led- administration’s commitment to continue putting in place legal and policy frameworks that would end Female Genital Mutilation, FGM, and other gender based violence practices in the state.
The governor’s wife stated this during an advocacy meeting with the State’s GBV management committee in Ado-Ekiti on Wednesday.
The meeting was organised by Care for Population and Reproductive Health, CPRH, an NGO working with Ekiti State Sexual Assault Referral Centre, SARC, survivors.
Mrs. Fayemi said Ekiti had all it takes to fight GBV, stressing that the state had in place laws to curb gender based violence.
These, according to her, included the comprehensive GBV laws which is the first of such policy in the country as well as the whistle blower policy for FGM.
“Part of the provisions made for GBV victims include treatment, care and protection at the sexual referral centre and the provision of other intervention through the help of Office of the SDGs. We now have other services, such as comprehensive support services, Permanent Shelter for victims in distress, Community engagements (ownership), Coordinating mechanism and the FGM task force who apprehend perpetrators,” Mrs Fayemi said.
Speaking on the need for continued education on the menace, she said: “We need to educate our people. They need to be taught on how to apply the law into their lives, all I want to see is that the work gets done.”
Mrs Fayemi said Obinrin Kete women empowerment programme would be launched soon, adding that the platform would provide a platform where women would be empowered to do some businesses to support themselves.
She cited an example of the case of Mama Jolaade Osho from Ikere who was being called many bad names before her office took over her case and eventually she died with a sweet song in her mouth.
The Director of the Care for Population and Reproductive Health, CPRH, Prof. Oladosu Ogengbede, in his goodwill messages said “Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) can be prevented through the hard work of the committee to save the generation unborn. Let us see how we can impact positively.”
He also promised to partner with the First Lady and the state Ministry of Women Affairs to end GBV/FGM in the state.
The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Alhaja Mariam Odunlade, in her remarks thanked the First Lady for her great efforts in gender advocacy in Ekiti State.
She said the state had recorded the highest legislation by way of prohibiting all forms of gender and harmful practices such as the female genital mutilation, sexual assault and all violence against women and children which forms the reason for the establishment of Sexual Assault Referral Centre, SARC, in Ekiti State.
