The Child Rights & Advocacy group of the School of Politics, Policy, and Governance has said it is driving awareness of domestic violence and prevention strategies among 200 school-age children.
A statement by the organisation explained that SPPG partnered with a school in Makoko, Lagos, via an initiative, known as ‘Project SHIELD’ – “Safeguarding Homes: Inspiring, Empowering, and Leading Children against Domestic Violence.’
Project SHIELD was officially launched by the capstone group in April 2023.
As part of their efforts, the group recently visited the KHAN Foundation at Iwaya, Makoko, to engage with the school and the children.
The Project Team Lead, Ms Bunmi Akinwonmi, stated, “We are collaborating with the students and relevant staff of the school to raise awareness about domestic violence and educate them on prevention and mitigation strategies.” She further explained that the selection of this particular school was based on the group’s understanding of the correlation between abuse and children from low-income families, as revealed in the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Kaiser Permanente.”
According to the statement, SPPG is an unconventional school that aims to attract, develop, and produce a new generation of political leaders dedicated to advancing sustainable multi-sectoral development in Nigeria.
It read partly, “The capstone group has developed a curriculum that can be expanded and utilised by other organisations and stakeholders interested in collaborating to address this issue.
“The curriculum modules shared with the engaged children include definitions of terms related to domestic abuse, various types of abuse (physical, financial, sexual, and digital/cyber bullying), and strategies for prevention and mitigation. The children also received one-on-one counselling sessions with qualified therapists and customised notebooks containing emergency helpline numbers for domestic abuse situations.”
