Kaduna State Government says it is working with the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and other development organisations to end Gender Based Violence (GBV) in the state.
Mr Salisu Baba, State Director, Development Aid Coordination, Planning and Budget Commission, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the sidelines of a five-day workshop for health and social workers, in Kaduna on Saturday.
Baba said the training exercise focused on mental and psycho-social support for GBV survivors.
He said the training, supported by UNFPA was the second phase in the series to increase the capacity of health and social workers to provide psycho-social first aid and counselling services to GBV survivors.
It is also designed to strengthen social workers in the Ministry of Human Services, Social Development and Sexual Assault Referral Centres to adequately support the survivors.
“This is timely considering the rate of GBV in the state.
“We are doing all we can with support from UNFPA to end the social menace of GBV through a multisectoral approach involving the police, judiciary and other relevant agencies,” he said.
Also speaking, Mrs Hafsat Kagara, UNFPA’s Right Based Approach Specialist, Kaduna Decentralised Sub-Office, said the goal was for the participants to understand the concept of mental wellbeing of GBV survivors and how to address it.
“We want the officials to have an overview of psycho-social first aid and basic counselling skills for GBV survivors.
“This is a train the trainers programme, as the participants are expected to train others,” she said.
Kagara commended the Kaduna State Government for the political will and for creating an enabling environment for development partners and stakeholders to come and support the GBV response.
For her part, Prof. Hauwa Yusuf, one of the resource persons, said the participants were strategically selected, particularly those with firsthand contact with GBV survivors.
Yusuf said that the training would enhance their ability to handle and counsel the survivors, describing the GBV response as a huge success, as many people now know they can report, support and get justice.
“This is possible because we have a government that frowns at GBV and is making efforts to ensure that perpetrators are brought to book,” Yusuf said. (NAN)
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