By Josephine Agbonkhese & Elizabeth Osayande
The Women Advocate Research and Documentation Centre, WARDC, in collaboration with the European Union, EU, and the United Nations Spotlight Initiative, recently held a one-day training for CSOs and marginalised groups on coordination mechanisms and social accountability in Lagos.
Speaking at the event, Founding Director, Women Advocates Research and Documentation Center, WARDC, Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, said that the issues of Sexual Gender-Based Violence, SGBV, are prevalent in Nigeria, while the lack of access to SRHR by women has also been a major issue.
“Research has shown that one in three women have experienced one form of SGBV or the other; hence the need to push for reforms that would eliminate all forms of discrimination against women.
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“Our goal is to strengthen CSOs in tackling all forms of discrimination, build capacity to demand accountability on VAWG/SGBV/HP/SRHR and push for reforms that would eliminate all forms of discrimination against women and girls so that we can have a society where women can live a life free of violence,” she said.
Also speaking, the Executive Director, International Press Centre, Lagos, Lanre Arogundade, said CSOs and community-based organisations need to imbibe the spirit of advocacy as a tool to effect change.
“It is the most effective tool for effecting desired changes in a democratic setting.
Advocacy enables you to identify those who are interested in that issue i.e the stakeholders. Advocacy means that you have an action plan, strategy and those that are willing to effect the necessary change.
“One of the problems we have is because we do not use advocacy, our issues do not get popular support and people just feel that these are people who want to satisfy themselves.
“And we should not always assume that because something is good everyone will support it. There are those who have reasons to oppose our actions and advocacy.
“We encourage you to target those people and win them over because if you do not, they will constitute a risk to your efforts,” Arogundade said.
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