The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) has thrown its weight behind a 220-hour Guinness World Record attempt by Nigerian lawyer and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) prosecutor, Olubunmi Uluba, warning that lack of knowledge of existing laws remains a major obstacle to justice for victims of violence.
The marathon, which involves the public reading of SGBV laws, policies and legal instruments from 15 African countries, is designed to go beyond a record-breaking feat and stimulate legal awareness, comparative learning and reforms in the continent’s response to sexual and gender-based violence.
Speaking in Abuja ahead of the exercise, Beatrice Eyong, UN Women Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS, said citizens could not effectively demand justice or protection under laws they did not understand.
“If you don’t know the laws, if you don’t know what has been written about sexual and gender-based violence, you cannot assert your rights.”
Eyong said the problem was not limited to members of the public, stressing that duty-bearers also needed adequate knowledge of SGBV legislation and policies to effectively implement them.
According to her, African countries have made commitments through international and regional instruments on women’s rights and the prevention of gender-based violence, but gaps persist in translating those commitments into effective domestic implementation.
She said the 220-hour initiative offered an opportunity for countries to examine one another’s legal frameworks, identify best practices and strengthen institutional responses to SGBV.
“The significance of the initiative goes beyond Nigeria and the participating African countries because of the international attention expected from the record attempt,” Eyong said, noting that the unprecedented exercise could take the conversation on SGBV laws to a global audience.
Uluba said the exercise would cover Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, South Africa, Namibia, Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, The Gambia and Botswana.
She explained that the comparative reading was not intended to rank African countries, but to identify provisions and practices that could strengthen survivor protection, access to justice and institutional responses to SGBV.
“We can pick the best practices and imbibe in our laws,” Uluba said.
She added that the initiative would not end with the record attempt, as organisers planned a post-marathon stakeholder dialogue where the findings would be converted into recommendations for policy and legislative reforms.
“We want to move from conversation to knowledge, from knowledge to evidence, from evidence to recommendations, and from recommendations to reform,” she said.
Eyong also rejected the perception that gender-based violence should be treated merely as a private or domestic matter, warning that its consequences extend to national development and economic growth.
“It’s not just a social thing. It’s not just a health thing. It’s not just something that happens in the home,” she said, stressing that SGBV affects communities, societies and economies.
She further noted that SGBV should not be viewed exclusively as a women’s issue, pointing out that men and boys can also be victims.
The initiative is also attracting government support, with stakeholders indicating that its momentum would be used to strengthen community engagement, survivor support and implementation of existing legal protections.
Jessica Duru, Legal Officer with FCT Women Affairs Secretariat, said the Federal Capital Territory had recorded more than 3,072 reported SGBV cases on its national dashboard, describing the figures as an indication that more victims were gaining confidence to speak out and seek help.
She said authorities would work to expand shelters, safe spaces and emergency support services while ensuring that legal protections were implemented across the six Area Councils.
Dr Abiodun Essiet, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement, also described the initiative as an important platform for strengthening public understanding of SGBV laws and improving protection for survivors.
The organisers said the ultimate objective was to ensure that the publicity generated by the Guinness World Record attempt translates into greater legal literacy, stronger enforcement, improved survivor protection and concrete legislative reforms across Africa.
