Insecurity: FG rewrites National Action Plan to protect women, children

‎The Federal Government has reviewed the National Action Plan (NAP) to factor in emerging issues hindering the peace and security of women and girls in the country.

The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Sen. Aisha Alhassan, said this during the launch of NAP on Tuesday in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Nigeria having ratified the UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on women, peace and security, introduced the plan 16 years ago to ensure the implementation of the resolution.

It was from the NAP that the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act (VAPP 2015) was established to reduce the toll of conflict, terrorism and violent actions on women and girls.

Alhassan, said there were defects in the first plan, making it impossible to tackle emerging issues affecting women.

“Nigeria’s first NAP, which ran from 2013-2016, was useful in mobilising national action on the need to improve human security and better protect citizens especially women and girls.

“The first NAP had gaps and did not take care of emerging issues like insurgency and violent extremism, among others.

“There was therefore very urgent need to have the NAP revised, “she said.

According to the minister, the UNSCR 1325 was the first formal and legal global document to acknowledge the disproportionate and heavier toll that war and conflict have on women and girls.

She also stressed the pivotal role women play in conflict management, conflict resolution and sustainable peace.

Alhassan expressed displeasure that in spite of women’s proven national reconciliation and stabilising roles in the family, they have continued to be excluded from participating meaningfully to peace processes.

She said insecurity and transnational boarder crimes, gender, responsive inclusion in peace architecture, violence against women, girls, children and communal crises are the major peace concerns of women.

These, she said, have been captured in the second NAP.

The minister therefore called on all Nigerians to support government in mainstreaming gender into all policies, programmes and organisational cultures in Nigeria through the national gender policy.

In her welcome address, the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Mrs Phyllis Nwokedi, said the launch was to provide the platform for public presentation of the revised NAP on UNSCR 1325.