Strengthening Governance Programming Through Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls: Raising Her Voice in Nigeria

Overview

The experiences of the Raising Her Voice (RHV) programme in Nigeria illustrate the power of coalition building for legislative advocacy, reinforced by mass grassroots mobilization. The focus of this case study is on RHV implementing partner, Women’s Rights Advancement and Protection Alternative (WRAPA), which works to promote poor and marginalized women’s participation in governance and decision making, and to lobby for the incorporation of the AU Women’s Protocol into Nigerian law. WRAPA’s work and relationships provided a vehicle to push for the adoption of a model law, the Gender and Equal Opportunities Bill, harmonizing the provisions of the AU Women’s Protocol, The Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women, and Nigeria’s National Gender Policy. Charting the progress of the Violence against Persons Prohibition Bill reflects the additional influence that can be brought to bear when civil society organisations work both directly with the National Assembly through strategic advocacy, and indirectly to stimulate demand for an end to violence against women and girls through grassroots mobilization.