Lilongwe District Gender Office has expressed concern over the increase of Gender Based Violence (GBV) cases in the district.
Speaking on Thursday during a stakeholders meeting, Gertrude Simwaka, Lilongwe District Gender Officer, said the district has recorded 6,859 cases from April 2023 to April 2024.
Simwaka attributed poverty and lack of self-reliance as some of the factors contributing to the high rate of GBV in the communities.
She said out of 6,859 GBV cases which were recorded, 5,429 of the cases involve women while 1,430 involve males.
“These figures are very worrisome, considering several interventions the government and Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) are implementing in the district,” said Simwaka.
According to Simwaka, many of the GBV cases that are mainly recorded in the district are physical, sexual, economic and emotional abuse, with 80 percent of the victims being women.
Lilongwe Police Station Community Policing Coordinator, Sub Inspector Laudan Kaira, said it is very crucial to educate people on the importance of taking gender based violence cases to the police on time.
“There is a need for women empowerment, as many of these women who fall victim to GBVs rely on men and they have no choice but to go back to their marriages. There is a need to link women empowerment groups in our communities to prevent and report such cases,” said Kaira.
Coalition for the Empowerment of Women and Girls (CEWAG) Project Officer, John Kachere, said that they will continue to raise awareness to empower women and girls by introducing a revolving fund so that they start small scale businesses.
By Mwai Kumanda, MANA
