Men have been blamed for abetting GBV in the community. [Photo/mywokenya.org]
Men in Kisumu County have been urged to come on board and join forces towards fighting Gender-Based Violence the community.
Speaking in Kisumu on Tuesday, Jane Obiero, Kisumu County Gender officer said that men play an integral part in ensuring that GBV is expunged from the community but lamented the fact that they were taking the back seat in this quest.
Obiero disclosed that most men in areas mapped out to be having the highest prevalence of the menace in Kisumu County rarely attended sensitization meetings aimed at creating forums where gender issues are discussed.
If men are collectively involved in this task, Obiero said GBV will quickly fizzle-out adding that most of them were key stakeholders and decision makers and thus will channel impetus to this embankment.
It is in this light that the Gender Boss revealed that the Devolved Unit was going to commemorate the 16 Days of Gender Activism which are slated for 24th November to 10th December.
“The maiden celebration will be held at Jomo Kenyatta Sports Ground while the subsequent commemorations will be rolled out in every Sub-county,” said Obiero.
The celebrations, she said are envisioned to create awareness of this sensitive issue and will also target reaching out to more males through Focused Group Discussions (FDG) and general community sensitization.
“We will convene sporting activities for instance football matches where the males will engage in playoffs. After the matches, they will be educated on gender issues,” she added.
The Men to Men discourse is also envisaged to tackle early pregnancies among school girls especially in Nyakach where 16 students sat for their KCPE exams in 2016 while pregnant.
The county, she said was keen on mitigating GBV despite myriad challenges but expressed optimism that through the involvement of all stakeholders a solution to the problems will be found.
For instance, she noted that the GBV rescue center at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) provided free P3 forms to victims meted by GBV.
This she said, was a hallmark in streamlining the referral path as those who could not afford to pay 1,000 shillings at the police stations to acquire them can now get access to them.