First Ever Town Hall On Sexual And Gender-Based Violence Holds In Enugu As Leaders Of Faith And Culture Meet On Thursday

The first ever town hall of its kind to find a common approach to tackling the silent menace of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV), has been scheduled to hold in Enugu.

The town hall meeting being packaged by WABMA Media Development Foundation with support from Ford Foundation, would bring Leaders of faith and culture from South Eastern part of Nigeria together on Thursday, October 31.

One hundred and thirty traditional, faith based and cultural leaders are expected to attend the town hall meeting organised by WABMA.

Announcing this in a statement on Tuesday, Mr. Odoh Diego Okenyodo, Coordinator of the Amplifying the Voices of Leaders of Faith and Culture Project of the WABMA Media Development Foundation, said ; “SGBV is deeply ingrained in our society, and addressing it requires transformative changes in our cultural and faith based practices. We need these leaders to speak more and louder to this issue when it matters.

“We also need to showcase traditional and faith based leaders who are already in the forefront of the fight against gender-based violence and whose personal lives exemplify the needed change,”he said.

Dr. Ken Ike Okere, Executive Director of the foundation, said; “The WABMA Media Development Foundation is the charitable arm of the West Africa Broadcast and Media Academy (WABMA), and we strongly believe in engaging strategically with social issues through the media”.

Reaffirming the organisation’s commitment to using the media as a tool for societal transformation, he said; “addressing SGBV through the voices of influential leaders of faith and culture, would catalyse meaningful social change; their amplified messages can shift the narrative and inspire action against sexual and gender-based violence”.

The town hall is expected to be a significant milestone in the ongoing efforts to combat SGBV in Nigeria as the influential leaders’ voices bring the subject to the forefront of national conversation.