The Nigeria Police Force has been trained on how to respond to sexual abuse cases with sensitivity of purpose and a in timely fashion.
An NGO, Women at Risk International Foundation (WARIF) in partnership with ACT Foundation recently trained about 100 officers in Lagos on how to address the high incidence of rape and sexual violence in rural communities.
The training also involved equipping the Police with the knowledge and tools required to identify and manage cases of gender-based violence in different communities with point of emphasis on referral.
Dr. DaSilva- Ibru, Founder of WARIF, who spoke about the objective of the training explained that, it is essential for officers in the force to be knowledgeable not only on how to identify, prevent but as well manage cases of gender-based violence in different communities.
“Following a successful first cycle of training of 50 law enforcement agents on the techniques to identify, manage and the appropriate referral of cases sent to the WARIF Centre, we decided to roll out this second phase to educate more law enforcement officers in Lagos .
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“By training the Police, we recognise that they are usually the first point of contact for many of the survivors of rape and sexual violence in our communities, and it is important they are well equipped with the right tools to manage, and refer the cases to us,” she said.
She explained further that, “with the implementation of these training programs, we have begun to build a sustainable partnership with the police to aid in our fight against rape and sexual violence in our communities.
“The training also presented the opportunity for us to reinforce our referral system, emphasising the importance of referring such cases in a timely fashion, usually within a 72 hour window and encouraging law enforcement to approach these cases with the respect and sensitivity it deserves. We hope to extend our footprints across more communities in the near future.”
The WARIF Centre offers Clinical and Forensic Examination Services, Psychological support with Counselling and Therapy services, Social Welfare Services, Legal Support, and a 24-hour Confidential Helpline for survivors of rape, sexual and gender based violence in Nigeria.
The organisation seeks to prevent, and advocate against the increasing prevalence of sexual violence amongst women and young girls of all ages and its consequences.
