A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Women Advocate Research and Documentation Centre (WARDDC), has identified trauma and poor economic condition as causes of violence and sexual abuse in tertiary institutions in North-East.
The Director of the organisation, Dr Abiola Afolabi, made this known at the opening of a two-day sensitisation for teachers and administrators on protection of students against Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in Maiduguri on Friday.
Afolabi said that the spate of the violence and sexual abuse in the institutions was prevalent due to lack of appropriate mechanisms to address the menace.
She pointed out that students in the region faced psychological trauma and economic challenges due to insurgency, which had made them vulnerable to sexual harassment and other forms of abuse.
The director said that ‘sex-for-marks’ was one of the commonest cases of abuse prevalent in universities and tertiary institutions in the country.
“There are several cases of students not being able to graduate because the teachers demanded to sleep with them to enable them to pass examinations.
“Other causes of sexual harassment include inadequate accommodation; students sometimes submit themselves for sex just to get accommodation in schools,” she said.
Afolabi attributed the trend to impunity, stigmatisation and lack of appropriate laws to punish offenders.
She, therefore, announced that the sensitisation was designed to “build the capacity of teachers, promote good ethics and enhance response to issues of human right violations and sexual abuse’’.
She added that the exercise also focused at awareness creation on “Violence against Persons Prohibition Act’’ to guarantee protection and safety of students.
The director urged the participants to promote image of their institutions by ensuring that they made the environment safe and secured for students.
The NGO is working to promote respect for human rights, gender equality, equity and social justice in the society.
