By Adenike Lawal
Niger State has recorded an alarming surge in sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) between January and July 2025, with over 1,000 cases reported to the State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development.
Mrs. Mary Isa, the Director of Planning and Gender-Based Focal Person in the ministry, disclosed this alarming statistic in Minna on Sunday, July 27, 2025. She expressed deep concern over the growing trend of rape and gender-based abuse across the state, emphasizing that incidents occur with disturbing frequency daily and even hourly, creating a crisis the ministry can no longer ignore.
Isa explained that the figure was compiled from reports submitted by various Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and documented on a centralized monitoring platform known as the National Dashboard. “From January to July alone, we’ve gathered over a thousand cases,” she said, noting that the system allows for consolidated tracking of incidents across the state.
She highlighted some of the most troubling cases, including one where a father is accused of raping his nine-year-old daughter. “The incident devastated the child, and it took us time before she could open up. Her father will face the full weight of the law,” Isa vowed. Another shocking trend, according to Isa, is the rise in incestuous abuse, with reports of siblings and even parents violating their own children. “It’s heartbreaking,” she said, underscoring the widespread and deeply rooted nature of the problem.
To combat the issue, the ministry has embarked on aggressive awareness campaigns in markets, workshops, traditional institutions, and schools. Anti-GBV clubs have also been established in several schools to encourage students to report incidents to trusted authorities. However, Isa acknowledged a grim irony: “some perpetrators are teachers and school counsellors themselves.”
She also expressed frustration over the reluctance of some families to pursue justice, opting instead to resolve rape cases privately, which often denies victims the justice they deserve. “This attitude is one of our biggest challenges,” she noted.
Despite limited arrests so far, Isa assured that the ministry, in collaboration with security agencies and relevant service providers, is intensifying efforts to ensure that offenders are identified, apprehended, and prosecuted. She issued a stern warning: “Anyone found guilty of rape or any form of gender-based violence will not escape justice. The law will take its full course.”
