By Bashir Hassan Abubakar
Towards deepening knowledge on Gender Based Violence (GBV) and entrenching peaceful and conflict free environment in communities, a Bauchi based Civil Society Organization (CSO), Attah Sisters Helping Hand (ASHH) Foundation, with funding from Women for Women International (WFWI) have carried out sensitisation program with students and staff of Government Day Secondary School Miri, a suburb within Bauchi metropolis.
Speaking to over 40 Students and staff of the School in a focus group discussion (FGD), ASHH Foundation’s community peace mediator in Miri, Lawal Umar said that the sensitisation campaign was aligned with the 2023 global “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence,”.
Lawal, an expert in community peace mediation and conflict resolution said that the sensitisation engagement was an avenue for both the students, as well as staff to interact freely on issues bordering around GBV, peace and conflict mitigation in schools and the community at large.
The lead community mediator, while engaging with the students and staff in the discussions narrated some true life incidences that buttressed some of the roots of gender-based violence and, emphasized the pivotal role that communities, including schools, play in creating a safe and inclusive environment.
Umar also urged the students to see their selves as advocates of anti GBV and peace in their classes, school, homes and the larger community.
While interfacing with the students and staff, representative of Women for Women International, simply known as Victoria, charged the students to be obedient to their parent and to always call the attention of their parents the moment they observe something that signals gender violence.
She also encouraged them to always seek to assist to their parents with house chores and do their best in school, pointing out that such actions brings them closer to their parents as their first line of defence against any form of violence.
After the highly participatory interface with the participants, a presentation of a carton of chalk was made by the ASHH Foundation’s women for women project communication officer to the school as a token of appreciation.
The school principal, Mallam Usman Ibrahim while appreciating ASHH Foundation’s choice of his school, also expressed gratitude to the community peace mediators and pledged support for similar programs in the future.
He said that the topic for the sensitisation campaign could not have come at a better time especially looking at the importance of community involvement in promoting peace and addressing gender-based violence.
Our correspondent also observed the active participation of students during the engagement, sharing their experiences and gaining valuable knowledge in the issues of GBV, peace and conflict mitigation in communities.