Gender equality: Gov. Gaidam endorses HeForShe campaign ~ Impact Online Nigeria

Gender equality: Gov. Gaidam endorses HeForShe campaign

The Rep of Gov. Gaidam, Com. Women Affairs Yobe state, Peter Mancha UN Women and rep of Emir of Fika during the HeForShe lunch in Damaturu, Yobe State.

Yobe State Governor Ibrahim Gaidam on Thursday endorsed ‘HeForShe’, a global campaign for gender equality and campaign against violence on women and girls.

Governor Ibrahim Gaidam was represented at the occasion by the Permanent Secretary Political in the governor's office Baba Ali Mohammed, pledged to support women and continue to provide a conducive environment for the women especially in Yobe State to succeed.

The event was organized by the Yobe State Ministry of Women Affairs and UN Women, in partnership with Search for Common Ground, and with funding support from the Government of Japan took place at the amusement park of Open University of Nigeria, Damaturu.

While pledging his commitment, the governor said apart from the previous support for women, his administration will not relent in the course of supporting women in the state to shine among their peers.

Governor Gaidam was later decorated as a HeForShe, making history as the 4^th governor and the state government to sign up for the HeForShe camapaign after Adamawa, Gombe and Plateau States.

In her remarks, Mrs Comfort Lamtey, the Country Director, United Nations Women, Nigeria represented by Mrs Lillian Unaegbu announced that Yobe is the forth state to have lunched the program after Plateau, Adamawa and Gombe, stressing that "the campaign was meant to mobilize men and boys to be advocates by creating awareness on gender-base violence that results to physical, sexual or psychological harm to women and girls".

She noted that “At least one in every five of the world’s female population has been physically or sexually abused at some time and this calls for concern'.

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UN Women thanked Gov. Ibrahim Gaidam for allowing women to hold positions in his government and for the campaign to hold in Yobe.


Yobe CP, Sunmuno Abdulmaliki signing up HeForShe

The HeForShe lunch in Yobe attracted over 150 stakeholders drawn from different sectors including Traditional Leaders, the Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Media and other men commit to be Gender Champions by promoting gender equality and women empowerment, at all levels.

The Police Commissioner, Abdulmaliki Sumonu at the event disclosed that the signing of State Penal Code Amendment Law 2018 which prescribed punishment for rape, kidnapping and unnatural offenses has led to the drop of rape cases drastically in the state.

Most of the invited dignitaries were recognized and decorated as HeForShe advocates in the State with Gov. Ibrahim Gaidam as the number one HeForShe advocate in the state.