By Winnie Onu, Makurdi
Efforts to strengthen the response to gender-based violence (GBV) in Benue State have received a boost with the launch of the Safe Pathways Project, an initiative aimed at establishing a coordinated referral and response system for survivors across the state.
The project comes amid growing concerns over the vulnerability of women, girls, persons with disabilities, adolescents and other at-risk groups to sexual and gender-based violence, human trafficking, exploitation, intimate partner violence and other harmful practices fueled by conflict, displacement, insecurity and economic hardship.
Despite the domestication of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law and the establishment of a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC), stakeholders say the absence of a unified GBV Response Protocol and Referral Pathway has continued to hamper effective service delivery, resulting in weak coordination among response agencies and delays in accessing healthcare, psychosocial support and legal services.
To address the challenge, the Safe Pathways Project, being implemented by Spring of Hope for the Girl Child Development Initiative (SHoGDI) with support from AmplifyChange, seeks to develop and institutionalize a comprehensive framework that will streamline the handling of GBV cases across health, legal, social welfare and humanitarian sectors.
Executive Director of SHoGDI, Mimidoo Uhundu, said the initiative is designed to improve coordination, accountability and access to quality survivor-centred services throughout the state.
According to her, the framework will establish clear operational procedures, referral timelines, confidentiality standards and accountability mechanisms for all actors involved in GBV response.
She explained that the project builds on earlier community-based referral interventions implemented in Kwande and Logo Local Government Areas under the CLAP4SRHR project supported by Plan International Nigeria, noting that the successes recorded highlighted the need for a state-wide system.
As part of the initiative, consultations will be held with government agencies, healthcare providers, civil society organizations, women groups, traditional and religious leaders as well as survivors to strengthen referral systems across the 23 local government areas of the state.
The project will also provide capacity-building programmes for frontline responders, including healthcare workers, social welfare officers, legal practitioners, security personnel and community volunteers on survivor-centred care, trauma-informed response, confidentiality and ethical case management.
In addition, a digital GBV dashboard will be developed to support real-time tracking of cases, improve data management and enhance coordination among service providers.
Uhundu disclosed that the Benue State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare has expressed support for the initiative and pledged to collaborate in institutionalizing the proposed framework following a strategic advocacy engagement held in March 2026.
She said the project is expected to strengthen access to justice, protection and healthcare services for survivors while promoting a more coordinated and sustainable response to gender-based violence across Benue State.
