Kano, Nigeria | November 2025
Kano State stands at a critical crossroads in its response to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). Despite incremental policy efforts and years of civil society advocacy, significant legal, institutional, and service-delivery gaps continue to undermine survivor protection and accountability. These gaps form the core rationale for the Kano Gender Justice Summit, scheduled for 13 December 2025.
While Kano has harmonised key provisions of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act into the Kano State Penal Code Amendment Bill (2021), the Bill remains pending at the State House of Assembly. As a result, Kano remains the only state in Nigeria yet to fully pass its domesticated VAPP Law—leaving survivors without comprehensive legal protection and institutions without a unified framework for response.
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Legal Gaps That Weaken Survivor Protection
The absence of a fully enacted VAPP Law creates structural limitations in how cases of sexual violence, domestic abuse, and exploitation are addressed. Without a comprehensive statute:
• survivor protections remain fragmented
• penalties for certain forms of violence are inconsistent
• prosecution pathways are constrained
• reporting mechanisms lack clarity
• survivor-centred procedures are not uniformly applied
These gaps contribute to underreporting, delayed justice, and increased pressure on survivors to abandon cases or pursue informal settlements that deny accountability.
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Institutional Capacity Under Strain
Beyond the legal framework, Kano faces severe institutional capacity challenges that affect survivor outcomes.
With a population exceeding 16 million people across 44 local government areas, the state currently operates only one Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC). This single facility bears responsibility for medical examination, forensic documentation, psychosocial support, and referrals for survivors across the entire state.
The resulting strain leads to:
• delays in accessing services
• gaps in medical and forensic evidence
• limited psychosocial support
• increased survivor fatigue and disengagement
Justice, health, and social protection institutions also face coordination challenges, with weak referral systems and limited data-sharing protocols contributing to fragmented responses.
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Justice Pathways and Prosecution Challenges
Survivors who attempt to pursue justice often encounter multiple obstacles, including:
• delays in investigation and prosecution
• procedural bottlenecks within courts
• lack of survivor-sensitive handling
• limited access to legal aid
• intimidation or community pressure
These challenges reduce conviction rates and erode trust in formal justice systems—particularly in cases involving children, adolescents, and economically vulnerable women.
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Emerging Threats: Digital Violence and Child Protection Risks
Consultations ahead of the summit also identify emerging patterns of harm, including technology-facilitated gender-based violence, online exploitation, and cyber harassment targeting women and girls.
At the same time, child protection concerns remain acute, particularly within:
• school environments
• informal learning settings
• digitally connected spaces without safeguards
These trends underscore the need for protection frameworks that evolve alongside changing forms of violence and exploitation.
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Why the Gender Justice Summit Is Necessary Now
The Kano Gender Justice Summit is designed as a response to these intersecting challenges. It seeks to move beyond diagnosis toward coordinated institutional action by:
• aligning government, justice, health, and protection actors
• strengthening consensus across religious and traditional institutions
• identifying operational bottlenecks that hinder survivor protection
• advancing policy commitments toward implementation
• promoting shared accountability across sectors
Rather than introducing new frameworks in isolation, the summit builds on existing reform efforts and prioritises practical, implementable solutions.
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A Moment for Coordinated Reform
Years of incremental reform, without full legal backing or institutional alignment, have contributed to persistent protection gaps. Civil society organisations, justice actors, and community leaders increasingly recognise that progress requires:
• a fully enacted and operational legal framework
• expanded survivor services across emirate councils
• coordinated justice pathways
• survivor-centred procedures
• institutional accountability mechanisms
The Kano Gemder Justice summit represents an opportunity to consolidate political will, institutional commitment, and community leadership around a shared reform agenda.
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Lift Africa Foundation’s Position
Lift Africa Foundation maintains that sustainable gender justice reform in Kano must be:
• legally grounded
• institutionally coordinated
• survivor-centred
• community-informed
• and accountability-driven
Lift Africa Foundation continues to engage stakeholders to ensure that the Kano Gender Justice Summit catalyses tangible reforms that strengthen protection systems and justice outcomes for women and girls across Kano State.