*As group takes sensitisation to Rivers community

A gender-base group, Solidarity Centre, has urged the Federal Government to domesticate and implement the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention 190(C 190) as a way of reducing Gender-Based Violence and Harassment (GBVH) in workspaces in Nigeria. The activists made the call during a capacity building workshop for women, workers and union leaders on best practices for GBVH and discrimination, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, recently. According to the group, the ILO C190 standardised the definition of gender-based violence across the world, adding that although Nigeria and several other countries have ratified the chatter, Nigeria is yet to domesticate it. They said the call is hinged on a research conducted, in conjunction with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) in 2020, where it showed that 57.5 per cent of female workers suffer gender-based violence and sexual harassment at their workplace with no culpability. The organisation’s gender specialist for elevating women in the workplace in West Africa, Vannesa Edeburu, said the research showed a high prevalence of gender-based incidents with zero reports. saying that adopting the law will serve as an accountability mechanism where perpetrators are punished. She stressed that it will mark the beginning of an end to the menace. Also, the group took the campaign to Ikuru Town, in Andoni Local Council of Rivers State.Vanessa said: “The capacity building, training and awareness programme was aimed at increasing knowledge of individual community-women, and institutions on related issues of discrimination and harassment against women.