Earlier today, the United Nations Women led a webinar with the Nigeria Governors' Wives Forum (NGWF) and the Council of Traditional Leaders of Africa (COTLA) to discuss ways our male allies across the country can help create a collaborative, cohesive, and inclusive approach in eliminating Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) in Nigeria.

In the presence of my remarkable colleagues, the First Ladies in Nigeria, the foremost Convener General of COTLA, HRM (Arc.) King Adedapo Aderemi acknowledged the work the forum had been doing over the years. He further praised the Chairperson of NGWF for reaching out to the council for their support in the next phase of their campaigns, which is to influence change in grass-root areas of the community.

Later on, several dignitaries conveyed the concerns the VAPP bill encountered and the crucial ways traditional leaders could help in the de-stigmatisation of SGBV victims and educating their communities on SGBV.

The Representative of UN Women to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Ms Comfort Lamptey, the Chairperson of NGWF, Her Excellency Erelu Bisi Fayemi and a few other First Ladies who spoke at the end of the meeting shared that the subsequent phase of the forum’s initiative involved implementing individual *State* plans with the help of the royal fathers.

I am optimistic that the collaboration between the UN Women, the COTLA in Nigeria and the NGWF would yield exponential results in the fight against violence.

#genderbasedviolence #endgbv #16daysofactivism #gbv #humanrights #womenempowerment #chiomauzodimma

H.E. Barr. Chioma Uzodimma
First Lady, Imo State and Founder, GoodHope Flourish Foundation.