By Gerald Azinge
ASABA/Nigeria: Delta State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Community and Social Development, Mrs Flora Alatan, has urged non governmental organisations (NGOs) to help promote awareness and keep the confidentiality of victims of sexual abuses in the state.
The commissioner stated this in her office in Asaba during a courtesy visit paid on her by a coalition of civil groups, headed by Pastor Bridget Afia, Coordinator of Ideal Women Advancement Initiative.
Mrs. Flora Alatan, responding to the groups request to partner with the ministry and an international body, Urgent Africa, to build a shelter home in Asaba, appealed to them to consider the other senatorial districts in the state for even spread.
Alatan appreciated their initiative, pointing out that the welfare of the girl child in Delta State was paramount and urged for more civil groups that could influence international fundings.
She assured them of the support of the state government in securing suitable sites for building shelter homes for victimised girls in the state and lauded their sensitisation strategy of collaborating with the Police, Ministry of Justice, media houses and other vital platforms in the state.
Pastor (Mrs) Afia said her NGO was already working in the Okpanam Community axis, pointing out that the group had carried out surveys to pinpoint reasons and places sexual based violence acts were mostly being carried out predominantly and what was the likely responses of the community and the Police.
She explained their mandate to partner with the Ministry of Women Affairs after submitting their report so that some officers of the ministry and the Police could be trained.
She observed that sexually based violence was surprisingly found more in the market and with young female hawkers and stated that her NGO aimed at changing the narrative.
According to her, the NGO was working with 10 other NGOs and all the divisional police stations in the state and explained that the international body, the Urgent Africa, needed assurance of a partnership with government before proceeding with building the Shelter Home in Delta state.
Barr. Rachael Obunseli, one of the delegates, officially informed the ministry of the projects their NGO had embarked to alleviate the plight of the lepers at the Aboh Ogwashi settlement which included distribution of food items, construction of a borehole and rehabilitation of broken down toilets.
