Group takes campaign against SGBV to Kaduna School

From: Femi Oyelola, Kaduna

Worried by the increased cases of gender-related violence, a group under the auspices of MenEngage Nigeria, Northwest Zone yesterday embarked on a Sexual gender-based violence (SGBV) awareness campaign to Zikda Model Schools Kaduna.
The sensitization program held in partnership with Empowering Women for Excellence Initiative and Legal Awareness for Nigerian Women (LANW) is part of activities marking the global “16 days Activism ” against all forms of gender-based violence and other related abuses, with the theme; “Unite to End Violence against Women and Girls”.
Speaking, Steering Committee members of the group Uche Brown said “the essence of the awareness is to educate the students about depression, gender-based violence against women and girl child, sexual molestation and sexual harassment, how to identify them and how to report and where to run to when you have such cases.”
Brown in his presentation defined bullying as, “persistent, threatening, and aggressive behaviour directed at a weaker, younger, and less powerful individual. Such action could be verbal or physical.
“A male or female pupil with the realization of being bigger and stronger than others
could develop the tendency to exercise authority over the younger and smaller ones.”
He expressed dismay that children also become bullies because it is an act they learn at home. “Children are not born to be bullies, they learned it from home.
“If a child grows up in a home where the father constantly bullies the mother, the child might grow up to become a bully, which the child was exposed to.
“ If it is a female child, she may not become a bully, but she may end up acting like a male child.
“ This is because she had been exposed to a rough, aggressive, and volatile environment.”