A nationwide survey by Invictus Africa, a civic-tech organisation, reveals that 50.7 per cent of Nigeria’s population remain unfamiliar with the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act.
This is a decade after the law was passed on May 25, 2015.
The organisation’s Executive Director, Bukky Shonibare, disclosed this while presenting the one-year survey report to the media on Monday in Abuja.
The report, titled Beyond Enactment: A Data-Driven Survey Report on the Implementation of the VAPP Act (2015) and Related State Laws, assesses the implementation and impact of the Act on Nigerians.
Samples were collected from 11,574 respondents across 35 states excluding Kano and the FCT using a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative data with qualitative insights from key informant interviews with government officials.
The data collection and analysis focused on four thematic areas: public awareness; enforcement systems; support services; and coordination mechanisms.
Shonibare noted that while Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) reported conducting public awareness campaigns on the VAPP Law, there remained a significant gap between institutional efforts and community impact.
“Only 49.3 per cent of the surveyed population have ever heard of the VAPP Law; of these, only 29 per cent reported having a good understanding of its provisions.
“Meanwhile, 50.7 per cent of Nigerians have never heard of the VAPP Law,” she said.
She highlighted that educational attainment strongly influenced awareness levels.
“Individuals lacking formal education 23.8 per cent or with only primary education 23.9 per cent were far less likely to have heard of the law compared to those with tertiary education.
“Among those with higher education, 55.4 per cent of graduates and 60.6 per cent of postgraduates were aware of the law.
“These figures suggest current awareness strategies are failing to reach the most vulnerable segments of the population.
“Geographic and occupational disparities are also pronounced.
“Only 42.9 per cent of rural residents are aware of the law, compared to 54.0 per cent of urban residents,” she added.
The report found that NGOs and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) workers had the highest awareness at 75.2 per cent, while civil servants ranked next at 59.7 per cent.
Lowest awareness rates were among the self-employed 40.6 per cent, students 46.3 per cent, and unemployed individuals 36.9 per cent.
On enforcement, Shonibare revealed that only 23 states had established sex offenders’ registers, with 18 integrating them into Gender-Based Violence (GBV) tracking systems, significantly limiting their effectiveness in preventing repeat offenses and informing policy.
She added that the lack of comprehensive data on Protection Orders in 19 states pointed to critical monitoring and accountability gaps in the judicial system.
The report also highlighted that while 30 states had mandatory reporting clauses, 15 lacked penalties for non-compliance, reducing their deterrent effect.
“This inconsistency reflects prosecution data: only 21 states recorded more than 20 VAPP-related prosecutions in the past year.
“States with penalties for non-reporting had a higher prosecution rate 67 per cent compared to 50 per cent in states without such penalties,” she said.
Shonibare stressed the need to close the gap between the law’s provisions and Nigerians’ lived experiences, in spite of the decade since the VAPP Act was enacted.
“The VAPP Act and related state laws have laid a strong legislative foundation for combating violence in Nigeria.
“However, implementation remains uneven, underfunded, and inaccessible, especially for rural populations and those with lower education levels,” she said.
She called for scaling up inclusive public awareness campaigns to ensure every Nigerian knew their rights under the VAPP Law.
She also urged strengthening enforcement systems, expanding survivor support services, and institutionalising coordination mechanisms.
“Laws are only as powerful as their implementation.
“Ten years after the VAPP Act, we must move from intention to action, from passage to protection. This data gives us clarity to build a safer, more just Nigeria.
“This 10th anniversary is a moment demanding political will, sustained investment, and collective responsibility.
“Only then can the full promise of the VAPP Act be realised for women, children, men, and all Nigerians, who deserve to live free from violence,” Shonibare added.
The Director General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Binta Bello said the agency, as the implementer of the VAPP Act in the FCT, secured 36 convictions, including two life sentences.
She said the convictions resulted from more than 3,000 gender-based violence reports received by the agency.
Represented by the Acting Director of the Violence Against Persons Department, Mrs Tolu Odugbesan, Bello noted that a culture of silence, religious interference, lack of awareness, among other factors, affected the implementation of the VAPP Act.
By Justina Auta
