The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has intensified efforts to eliminate Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and other harmful practices in Kaduna State, by launching a comprehensive media engagement initiative aimed at strengthening public awareness and improving responsible reporting on issues affecting women, girls, and other vulnerable groups.
Speaking at the opening of a two-day capacity-building programme for about thirty journalists, the UNFPA Kaduna State Representative, Dr. Elvis Evborein, said the engagement forms part of the agency’s broader mission to promote healthy and productive lives, reduce maternal mortality, and advance gender equality across communities.
Dr. Evborein explained that many perpetrators of GBV wield significant psychological, social, or economic power over their victims, leaving survivors feeling helpless and unable to seek help on their own.
“This is why external intervention is not only necessary but urgent,” he noted. He added that UNFPA is committed to ensuring that every pregnancy is safe, every childbirth is protected, and every young person is given the opportunity to thrive especially in fragile and humanitarian settings.”
He further emphasized that achieving these goals requires strong collaboration with the media, whom he described as a powerful force in shaping public opinion, influencing policy, and driving societal change.
In her remarks, the Executive Director of the International Society for Media and Public Health (ISMPH), Mrs. Moji Makanjuola, urged journalists to embrace responsible reporting practices that protect the identity and dignity of GBV survivors.
She highlighted that the media remains an indispensable tool in advancing public health communication, catalysing community awareness, and contributing to national development.
“Accurate, sensitive, and ethical reporting can help break the silence around gender-based violence and encourage victims to seek help,” she said. Makanjuola stressed that journalists play a critical role in amplifying the voices of survivors and holding institutions accountable.
During a technical session, resource person Mr. Boniface Kassam delivered a detailed presentation on the root causes, forms, and far-reaching consequences of GBV.
He explained that understanding these dimensions is essential for journalists who aim to report more effectively on human rights, sexual and reproductive health, and community protection issues.
Mr. Kassam urged media organizations to institutionalize policies that safeguard survivors during reporting processes. He identified safety, confidentiality, respect, and non-discrimination as the core principles journalists must uphold to ensure ethical and professional coverage of GBV and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) issues.
Participants at the workshop commended UNFPA and ISMPH for the initiative, expressing optimism that the training would enhance their capacity to influence behavioural change through accurate storytelling, investigative reporting, and community-focused journalism.
Cov/Shindong Bala
