A 220-hour Guinness World Record attempt focused on sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) laws has commenced in Nigeria, with stakeholders advocating greater public awareness, survivor protection, improved access to justice and legislative reforms across Africa.
The initiative, led by Barrister Olubunmi Uluba, involves the public reading and comparative examination of SGBV laws from 15 African countries.
The countries are Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, South Africa, Namibia, Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, The Gambia and Botswana.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, Uluba said the initiative was designed to draw attention to SGBV laws that many citizens and justice-sector actors may not fully understand.
She said the exercise would examine how the participating countries define and address SGBV, the protections available to survivors, access to justice, institutional responsibilities and gaps in implementation.
“Meaningful reform begins with knowledge,” she said, stressing that the objective was to learn from different legal systems and identify provisions that could strengthen national laws.
According to her, the process would move from conversation to knowledge, knowledge to evidence, evidence to recommendations and ultimately to reform.
Record Bid Not the Ultimate Goal
Uluba said the Guinness World Record attempt was only a platform for achieving a broader objective.
“The Guinness World Record gives us visibility, but visibility is not the destination. Impact is the destination,” she said.
She explained that the 220-hour duration was necessary because of the volume of legal materials to be examined from Nigeria and the other 14 countries.
She added that the initiative would continue after the record attempt through a post-dialogue process involving relevant stakeholders.
Findings from the comparative legal review, she said, would be developed into recommendations for policy and legislative reforms.
NUJ Supports Initiative
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) also expressed support for the initiative, with its National President, Comrade Alhassan Yahya Abdul, represented by the Chairman of the NUJ FCT Council, Grace Ike.
The participation of the NUJ highlights the role of the media in taking the campaign beyond the event venue through sustained reporting and public education.
Journalists, stakeholders noted, have an important role to play in translating complex legal provisions into information that ordinary citizens can understand, while maintaining public attention on survivor protection, prosecution and implementation of SGBV laws.
A representative of the SGBV Unit of the Federal Ministry of Justice, Mary, said her interaction with victims, justice actors and members of the public had revealed significant gaps in knowledge of SGBV laws.
She noted that people could not effectively assert rights they did not know existed, while duty bearers could not properly implement laws they did not understand.
Mary also stressed the importance of early reporting and preservation of evidence in SGBV cases.
According to her, prosecution begins with reporting, followed by investigation, medical examination and evidence preservation.
She urged survivors of sexual assault to seek prompt medical attention, noting that medical evidence could be crucial to successful prosecution.
UN Women Backs Legal Awareness
The UN Women representative, Ms. Beatrice Eyong, said the initiative was important because people could not demand rights they did not know existed.
She linked the campaign to Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality and relevant African and international commitments against SGBV.
Eyong noted that although many countries had ratified international and continental instruments, implementation remained a challenge in some jurisdictions, particularly where such commitments had not been fully domesticated into national laws.
She said the comparative exercise could enable African countries to learn from one another and identify best practices.
She also stressed that SGBV should not be regarded as merely a private or social issue, given its wider implications for families, communities, development and economic growth.
Academics Seek Wider Public Understanding
Dr. Comfort A. Adokwe of Nasarawa State University, Keffi, said academic institutions had a responsibility to take legal knowledge beyond classrooms and textbooks.
She noted that while SGBV laws were contained in official documents and academic materials, many members of the public remained unaware of their existence and provisions.
Adokwe urged universities and gender studies centres to simplify and communicate relevant laws in ways that ordinary citizens could understand and apply.
Government Seeks Community Engagement
Dr. Abiodun Essiet, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement for the North Central and a gender activist, commended the initiative and called for stronger community involvement in the fight against SGBV.
She said government interventions must involve both formal and informal sectors, noting the influence of culture, religion and community structures on people’s lives.
Essiet urged traditional and religious leaders to acquire adequate knowledge of SGBV laws so they could educate their communities and understand their legal responsibilities.
She condemned victim-blaming, stressing that sexual violence could not be justified by a victim’s dressing or other circumstances surrounding an assault.
She further noted that children, women and men could all become victims, including through abuse by people they trusted.
Essiet also highlighted government interventions such as Sexual Assault Referral Centres and special courts for SGBV cases.
She said government was working with the National Assembly on the review of relevant legislation, including the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, and urged lawmakers to accelerate the process.
Representing the Federal Capital Territory Administration, Madam Jessica Chizoba said the FCTA was committed to strengthening SGBV response mechanisms across the six Area Councils.
She identified shelters, safe spaces, emergency support and safe homes as areas requiring greater attention.
Chizoba also called for grassroots education, particularly the translation of complex legal provisions into simple messages and local languages.
She said citizens should understand their rights, know how to report cases and be aware of appropriate channels for seeking assistance.
Women With Disabilities Demand Inclusion
Lois, representing the Network of Women with Disabilities, commended the organisers for including women with disabilities in the initiative.
She noted that women and girls with disabilities could face heightened vulnerability to SGBV as well as additional barriers when seeking justice.
She questioned how a deaf survivor could communicate an assault or how a woman using a wheelchair could effectively seek protection after an attack if justice systems were not accessible.
Lois therefore called for every aspect of the initiative to be disability-inclusive and accessible, particularly for women and girls with disabilities.
Comparative Review to Inform Reform
Responding to questions from journalists, Uluba said the comparative examination of laws from the 15 countries would distinguish the initiative from conventional SGBV awareness campaigns.
She said the exercise would identify gaps and weaknesses in Nigeria’s legal framework while drawing attention to useful provisions in other African jurisdictions.
According to her, the findings would provide evidence for policy recommendations and possible legislative reforms.
She added that the 15 countries represented the pilot phase, with plans to expand the initiative beyond Africa to other continents.
Religious, Traditional Leaders Urged to Know the Law
Stakeholders at the event also called on religious and traditional institutions to understand their responsibilities in SGBV cases.
They noted that survivors often turn first to pastors, imams, traditional rulers and other trusted community figures.
Such leaders, they said, should understand applicable legal obligations, including reporting responsibilities where required by law.
The stakeholders stressed that SGBV should not be concealed or treated solely as a family, religious or private matter when legal intervention is required.
From Record Attempt to Reform
Organisers said the ultimate goal of the 220-hour exercise was to establish a sustainable platform for legal education, comparative research and reform.
The post-dialogue process is expected to keep stakeholders engaged and develop evidence from the examination of the laws of the 15 participating African countries.
They said the initiative would enable Nigeria to contribute to legal research, advocacy and policy dialogue while providing an opportunity for African countries to share solutions to SGBV.
The central message from the event was that having laws on the books is insufficient if citizens do not know their rights, justice actors do not understand their responsibilities, institutions fail to enforce the law and survivors cannot access available protection.
The 220-hour record attempt, therefore, seeks to transform public attention into legal knowledge, legal knowledge into evidence and evidence into reforms that can strengthen protection and access to justice for victims and survivors of sexual and gender-based violence.
While the initiative begins in Nigeria and focuses initially on Africa, its organisers say its ultimate vision is global.
