The wife of Abia State Governor, Mrs Nkechi Ikpeazu, in a bid to deepen the response to Gender Based Violence, has kickstarted training of 40 paralegals across the 17 local Governments areas of the state.
In a statement, Mrs Ikpeazu disclosed that her office is collaborating with the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) and Vicar Hope Foundation for the training, adding that the training will attract all relevant stakeholders.
“The training will provide valuable reporting and referral pathways for data and survivor services. All relevant stakeholders will be at the event. Those to be trained include retired civil servants and teachers, community leaders, youth leaders, retired members of the police and other recognized institutions, especially persons who have capacity to do the work,” she said.
It is worthy to note that Mrs Ikpeazu, has been at the forefront of undertaking projects and programmes aimed at assisting vulnerable persons and the less privileged. At the last count, she has built over 90 houses for widows and vulnerable persons in the society. Her pet project, Vicar Hope has been very instrumental towards achieving the feat.
As part of critical engagements against the backdrop of #16DaysOfActivism, she has met with the leadership of the Child Protection Network of Abia State.
In her remarks, she stated that the objective of all advocacies within the #16daysofActivism is to strengthen the protection and response systems.
“It was exciting to learn about the progress we have made and the possibilities of what we can do. The Child Rights Law of Abia State was passed in 2006, and the provisions of this law need to be revisited, the world is changing and we must shape our laws and policies to suit the changing times,” she explained .
She opined that while we advocate about Gender-Based Violence we must also recognize that children are also victims of violence.
She narrated that products of the day’s meeting with Child Protection Network is gearing toward a review to the child rights law of Abia State, strengthening the Child Justice Systems and Rules of engagement for Family Courts and a Safe-Guarding Policy for Abia State.
According to her, “I am already committed to meeting with the Chief Justice of Abia State in the next few days. While I was advocating for the VAPP law that has been passed in Abia State I also advocated for the creation of family courts. These reviews and frameworks are essential to the development of our protection system. I am optimistic that in the coming months we will come up with substantial guiding principles and engage with stakeholders to formulate policies that protects the lives and future of our children”.
Challenges remain under-reporting of cases, and efficient prosecution. She therefore promised to overcome this and encourage our people to #SpeakOut with courage and #EndGBV.