All 36 commissioners of education in Nigeria will partner the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to reduce sexual harassment in tertiary institutions.
The meeting, summoned by ICPC and Gender Mobile Initiative (GMI), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), will come up on July 9 in Abuja.
Via a statement released on Monday, Omowumi Ogunrotimi, GMI’s executive director, said the meeting is looking to adopt structure that would combat sexual harassment in institutions of higher learning.
She added that said the objective is to create a learning environment where all students and educators can pursue their goals outside of fear and intimidation.
“Development partners, education regulators, student groups and civil society organisations will engage and commit to the state-level adoption and implementation of sexual harassment prevention frameworks,” the executive director said.
“It is imperative that we create a learning environment where all students and educators can pursue their goals free from fear and intimidation.
“To achieve this, it is essential to implement comprehensive policies and effective prevention strategies.
“To this end, a stakeholders engagement will be convoked on July 9 in Abuja, to address the pervasive issue of sexual harassment on campuses, with a comprehensive focus on prevention frameworks.”
Till this time, the sexual harassment prohibition bill that passed by the national assembly in the year 2020 has not been signed into law.