The United Nations has called on the federal government, development partners and humanitarian organisations to ensure their Covid-19 prevention and response plans are informed by gender analysis.
This is so that the plans acknowledge the gender implications of the pandemic and are gender responsive.
The Communication Consultant, Chioma Agwuegbo in a statement said they should design long-term resilience and recovery programming based on the collection and analysis of data disaggregated by sex, gender, and other identities that impact experiences.
She said efforts to minimise delays in accessing and receiving care by providing information and protective clothing and equipment to reduce exposure to COVID-19, particularly for women and girls living with disabilities, and LBTQ women and girls.
“The Government of Nigeria should institutionalise a systemic, nationwide welfare programme with interventions designed to target the grassroots level.
“There should be special attention to women in the informal sector who have lost their jobs or been forced to suspend businesses and income-generating activities in order to help them survive and re-establish pre-pandemic sources of income.
“The Government should take urgent action to address the increased prevalence of violence against women and girls (VAWG) during COVID-19 lockdowns and the restricted access to life-saving services for survivors of VAWG, including services related to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR).
“ This should include the adoption of the Gender Equality bill and the meaningful implementation of the Violence Against Persons bill.
“ Women’s participation and leadership in decision-making should be ensured so that policy-making and implementation during and post-COVID-19 are gender responsive.
“The Government of Nigeria, supported by the international community, should implement higher quotas for women’s participation and leadership in decision-making.
“There is need to advocate for the inclusion of women, girls and women’s rights organisations (WROs) in all decision-making related to governance and response to the pandemic.
“ The international community should strengthen commitments to funding for women, peace and security (WPS), gender equality and women’s and girls’ rights – including core, flexible, accessible and long-term funding for organisations to implement their self-defined priorities informed by their communities’ own realities, needs, knowledge and contexts.
“This must be situated in broader commitments to protect civic space and women’s and girls’ full, equal and meaningful engagement with civic space, such as informal support networks and community-based organisations.
“ The Government of Nigeria and the international community should prioritise engagement with civil society working in the area of gender equality, peace and security in responding to the pandemic, rather than military actors.
“Engagement with civil society should include technical and financial support. The security sector in Nigeria should receive training on gender equality and human rights to enable them to interface effectively with citizens,” she said .
