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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Crime & Justice

FG to establish GBV safe spaces in 774 LGs

From The Punch · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • The Nigerian Federal Government plans to establish dedicated safe spaces in all 774 Local Government Areas to support survivors of gender-based violence (GBV).
  • This initiative is part of a National Action Plan on GBV, aiming to improve access to care, protection, and justice for survivors.
  • The Minister of Women Affairs reported 2,755 GBV cases between January and April 2026, with only 4% resulting in successful prosecution, highlighting the need for stronger mechanisms.

Nigeria's Federal Government is set to establish dedicated safe spaces in all 774 Local Government Areas across the country. This initiative aims to bolster protection and support services for survivors of gender-based violence (GBV).

A core component of this upcoming national action plan is the strategic establishment of dedicated safe spaces across all 774 local government areas in Nigeria to decentralise immediate care and protection.

— Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, Minister of Women Affairs and Social DevelopmentExplaining the strategy behind establishing safe spaces for GBV survivors.

Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, announced the plan during a Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency. The agreement, in partnership with the New Era Foundation, seeks to enhance rehabilitation and support for GBV survivors nationwide. Sulaiman-Ibrahim stated that these safe spaces are a core component of an upcoming national action plan designed to decentralize immediate care and protection, making services more accessible within communities.

These centres will provide medical, legal, psychosocial and rehabilitation services under one roof to support recovery and access to justice.

— Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, Minister of Women Affairs and Social DevelopmentDescribing the integrated services to be offered at regional mega-protection centers.

Beyond local safe spaces, the government is also developing regional mega-protection centers to offer integrated services, including medical, legal, and psychosocial support, under one roof. Mobile support teams, operating under the 'Women on Wheels' initiative, will extend services to underserved areas. The Minister expressed grave concern over the rising GBV cases, noting that 2,755 incidents were documented between January and April 2026, averaging about 23 cases daily. Alarmingly, only 4% of formally reported cases led to successful prosecutions, underscoring the urgent need for more robust protection and accountability systems. Women and girls constitute over 81% of documented survivors, with sexual violence accounting for 82% of recorded cases.

Through Women on Wheels, we will take trauma-informed care, psychosocial support and essential services closer to women and girls who need them most.

— Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, Minister of Women Affairs and Social DevelopmentHighlighting the reach of the mobile support teams initiative.
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Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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