The Federal Government has reported that 10,326 cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) were recorded between January and September 2025, with 2,444 survivors receiving care in recovery centres.
The disclosure was made by the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imam Suleiman-Ibrahim, during the National Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue on Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TF-GBV) held on Friday in Abuja. The event was organized by ActionAid and other development partners as part of activities marking the 2025 16 Days of Activism, themed: “UNiTE! End All Forms of Digital Violence against Women and Girls.”
Represented by Dr Adanna Steinacker, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Women’s Health, the minister said 511 survivors were also supported with livelihoods and empowerment interventions.
She noted that while the 2024 National Demographic and Health Survey showed declines in sexual, physical, and intimate partner violence, one in three women still experienced GBV during the period.
“Violence against women, children, and vulnerable groups remains a painful reality. Technology-facilitated GBV, which includes sexual torture, non-consensual sharing of intimate images, online blackmail, and manipulation of digital platforms, remains largely unreported due to its complex nature,” she said.
Dr Steinacker added that the Federal Government has finalized plans to relaunch the National Electronic Dashboard on Gender-Based Violence to track trends, identify patterns, and improve case management and coordination nationwide.
She further revealed that the ministry would prioritize establishing an Emergency GBV Response Fund, a ring-fenced mechanism to bridge funding gaps and ensure operational stability for shelters, hotlines, emergency response, and survivor rehabilitation.
Earlier, Mrs Cynthia Rowe of the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office called for a national online gender safety policy to coordinate agencies and enforce content moderation standards. She urged social media platforms to remove harmful content within 48 hours, deploy culturally aware moderation teams, and publish transparency reports.
Rowe also recommended the creation of digital abuse courts and digital protection orders—one-stop portals integrating police, legal aid, and psychosocial support—and mandatory gender-sensitive cybercrime training for law enforcement.
Andrew Mamedu, Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria, said the dialogue aimed to strengthen national coordination, deepen understanding of TF-GBV, identify legal and institutional gaps, and co-create a National Roadmap for Prevention and Response.
He emphasized that the initiative would help secure commitments from government and other stakeholders to improve protection, reporting, accountability, and digital safety for women and girls across Nigeria.
