Some experts say this represents only a fraction of cases.
The president’s office referred Reuters’ questions to the Ministry of Women Affairs. The ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on what action they had taken to combat rape and gender-based violence.
Around the world, police and prosecutors, victim support teams and women’s movements, as well as the United Nations, have reported rising domestic violence during coronavirus-related lockdowns.
Lagos state […] saw a nearly 40% increase in rape and domestic and sexual violence in 2020, official data showed.
After a string of high-profile attacks, including the gang-rape of a 12-year-old girl in northern Jigawa state, president Muhammadu Buhari declared a nationwide state of emergency in June last year to tackle the crisis.
Police did not respond to requests for comment for this article, but in June last year they said reports of rape had risen during the pandemic and introduced measures to improve police response to gender-based violence.
Some Nigerian women are now acting to address the problem of sexual violence, saying that cases have ended in few prosecutions, widespread stigmatization and a tendency to blame victims.
