By Winnie Onu, Makurdi
The Spring of Hope for the Girl Child Development Initiative (SHoGDI) has empowered adolescent girls living in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps across Logo and Kwande Local Government Areas of Benue State through a transformative gender-based intervention.
At least 163 girls directly benefited from the project, with an additional 815 participants indirectly impacted through sensitisation and capacity-building sessions geared toward combating Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) in their communities.
Executive Director of SHoGDI, Mimidoo Uhundu, disclosed this in Makurdi on Thursday during a special Learning Session to share the outcomes and success stories of the nine-month CLAP4SRHR project, implemented in Kwande and Logo LGAs.
Uhundu explained that the girls were not only trained on issues relating to gender-based violence but also equipped with practical skills to produce reusable sanitary pads for themselves and others to foster both hygiene and economic empowerment.
She added that community stakeholders, including traditional rulers, actively participated in the initiative.
According to her, the Community-Led Action for Participation in Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (CLAP4SRHR) project was designed to advance adolescent sexual education and prevent gender-based violence through locally driven efforts.
“Over the past nine months, we have walked hand-in-hand with traditional leaders, religious institutions, youth, women’s groups, and healthcare providers to challenge harmful norms, empower young people, and strengthen community-led referral pathways for GBV response.
“This project was not just an intervention – it was a movement rooted in community ownership, local leadership, and a shared vision for dignity, health, and safety for every adolescent, especially girls. The stories, lessons, and outcomes we are sharing today reflect the power of what we can achieve when communities are not just recipients but active drivers of change,” she said.
Uhundu emphasised the importance of sustaining the momentum to ensure no girl is left behind, noting that community ownership and leveraging existing local structures are key to long-term impact.
She raised concern over the rising number of SGBV cases in Benue, which she said constitute the highest percentage of human rights violations, especially in rural areas where support systems are weak or nonexistent.
Uhundu therefore called on the Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) in Benue State to strengthen its presence in rural communities to better address the needs of SGBV survivors.
She lamented that many survivors—mostly women and girls—lack access to justice, medical care, trauma therapy, and other essential services because they are not available at the grassroots.
“While the unavailability of SARC services persists, GBV cases in rural areas continue to rise amidst an acute shortage of support for survivors,” she added.
Two adolescent girls, Blessing Atime and Anita Tsavwua, from the IDP camps in Logo and Kwande respectively, shared their personal experiences with the project during the session held at the Bureau for International Cooperation and Development (BICD) office in Makurdi.
They appealed for more sewing machines to help expand the production of reusable sanitary napkins.
Also speaking, Dugeri Aondofa Jacob, camp manager at the Anyiin IDP camp in Logo LGA, commended SHoGDI for what he described as a life-changing intervention.
“The training has transformed the lives of many girls in the camp. It has empowered them in several ways. Today, the Anyiin IDP camp is a reusable pad production hub,” he noted.
In the same vein, Emmanuel Shagba, Camp Coordination and Camp Management Supervisor at the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), praised SHoGDI for taking SEMA’s advice to work in underserved areas like Logo and Kwande, where humanitarian support is limited.
“They are high-risk areas, and SHoGDI has defied the odds to be there. We keep advocating for partners to go beyond Makurdi. There was so much ignorance around sexual education in the areas, but with this training, awareness is growing,” he said.
Director General of BICD, Viashima, in his remarks, pledged to build on SHoGDI’s findings to further promote the rights and wellbeing of adolescent girls across Benue State.
