British Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Hill Obe, has called on security agencies in Nigeria to implement the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) Gender Policy II.
Obe made this known during the inauguration of the NSCDC Gender Policy II (2026-2030) on Tuesday in Abuja.
According to her, policy implementation is where transformation becomes a reality.
She explained that a policy is meaningful only when it moves from people to practice and is reflected in daily decisions, leadership appointments, training, deployment and wider organisational culture.
“So I encourage every officer; male or female, represented here to keep pushing forward as strong leadership, adequate resourcing, continuous learning and collective accountability will be essential to this policy to reach its full potential.
“So, may the launch of gender policy II inspire even greater ambition, stronger collaboration, and a future where every officer whether woman, man or disabled, can serve, lead, and excel without barrier or bias.
“This is a very inclusive policy that addresses technology-facilitated gender-based violence, embeds gender-responsive budgeting/monitoring and accountability systems,” she said.
Obe said the inauguration of the policy was a clear statement of intent, an affirmation of the leadership in women, peace and security space and a confident step towards a more resilient Nigeria.
The envoy added that the UK was glad to be in partnership with Nigeria, hence the rooted relationship in commonwealth values, shared democratic principles and deep people-to-people links.
She applauded the NSCDC Commandant General (CG), Ahmed Audi, for establishing a gender desk to increase women’s representation in the corps.
“At the heart of today’s celebration is women, peace and security, a global framework built on the simple truth that peace is more durable if women are participating fully and equally in shaping decisions,” she said.
The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo said that the second policy came into play after the gaps in the first policy was worked on.
“Having worked on the gaps in the first one, we are here to launch the second policy and it is officially launched,” he said.
The minister, represented by NSCDC CG, said the support and partnership from agencies in the actualisation of the new policy was encouraging.
“We feel very encouraged partnering with you and we will continue to do our best to make our service gender inclusive.
“As for the security reforms in Nigeria, we know that the inclusion of women is very important.
“Most victims of asymmetric conflicts are women and children so establishing the gender desk is very central and germane to the operations of the corps,” he said.
Dr. Ukoha Ukiwo, the Team Leader of Strengthening Peace and resilience in Nigeria (SPRiNG), appreciated NSCDC for the partnership opportunity on the commissioning of the policy.
Ukiwo expressed the hope that the new policy would help the NSCDC play a key role in prevention, reporting and prosecution of those who violate the rights of women and engage in sexual and gender based violence.
“We hope that through this policy, NSCDC will ensure that its objectives are achieved.
“The adoption of this gender policy goes with Nigeria’s third action plan on women’s peace and security.
“We are happy to work with the corps on this initiative as what we aim to achieve is to aid in their capacity and help them deliver their services.
“We believe that if this is done members of the public will have enhanced confidence in what security agencies do and partner with them and reduce self help which results to violence,” he said.
Dr. Eleanor Nwandinobi, a Women, Peace and Security Expert, said that the responsibility of ensuring the involvement of women in national affairs was that of collective efforts.
Nwandinobi charged security agencies to make the policy a reality by taking ownership and being at the forefront for persons living with disabilities.(NAN)
