The FAME Foundation has declared a national emergency over digital violence in Nigeria, revealing that approximately 68.9 million Nigerians are currently victims of various forms of online abuse.
Digital Violence Reaches Epidemic Proportions
Executive Director of FAME Foundation, Arabinrin Aderonke Atoyebi, made the shocking disclosure in Abuja during the launch of the 2025 16 Days of Activism campaign with the theme "UNiTE to End Digital Violence Against All Women and Girls."
Atoyebi stated that the staggering figure comes from Gatefield's State of Online Harms 2025 report, indicating that online abuse has reached epidemic levels, affecting roughly one in three Nigerians. The report highlights that women and girls are disproportionately targeted in this digital violence crisis.
The same report contains even more alarming statistics about children's safety online, revealing that 97 percent of Nigerian children have experienced some form of sexual exploitation online, while 89 percent have received unwanted sexual content or requests.
States Respond to Growing Gender-Based Violence
Meanwhile, the Nasarawa State government has expressed serious concern as 852 cases of Gender-Based Violence were reported in the state between January and September this year.
Commissioner for Women Affairs and Humanitarian Services, Hauwa Jugbo, disclosed this during a press conference marking the 2025 16 Days of Activism against GBV in the state. She acknowledged the efforts of Governor Abdullahi Sule's administration in domesticating the Violence against Persons Prohibition Law and prosecuting perpetrators, but noted that cases continue to rise.
Jugbo specifically lamented the increasing cases of technology-facilitated GBV, which includes:
- Cyberstalking
- Online harassment
- Non-consensual sharing of intimate images
- Online bullying and blackmail
- Digital impersonation and identity theft
In Katsina State, Governor Dikko Radda has warned GBV perpetrators that stringent measures await them if caught. Represented by Commissioner for Information Dr. Bala Zango at a stakeholders' sensitisation workshop, the governor reiterated that the state government would no longer allow vulnerable persons to be victimized.
Political Exclusion Fuels Violence Against Women
Stakeholders and gender rights advocates have intensified calls for the National Assembly to pass legislation guaranteeing reserved seats for women, warning that rising levels of violence against women are a direct consequence of their exclusion from political leadership.
At the Women of Words 2025 event organized by Gender Strategy Advancement International in Abuja, advocates revealed that 36 percent of married women in Nigeria are survivors of intimate partner violence, while 96 percent of women aged 15 to 49 have experienced some form of physical or sexual violence.
Executive Director of GSAI, Adaora Sydney-Jack, emphasized that the alarming rate of intimate partner abuse underscores the urgency of political reforms that give women equal access to decision-making. "For every woman who speaks," she noted, "thousands of others swallow their pain in silence."
The advocacy comes as federal lawmakers prepare to deliberate on the Reserved Seats for Women Bill, a milestone proposal aimed at increasing women's political representation and strengthening institutional responses to GBV.
Chairman of Peering Advocacy and Advancement Centre in Africa, Ezenwa Nwagwu, stressed that the campaign for gender inclusion must evolve into a sustained, nationwide movement capable of reshaping Nigeria's political culture.
