Kano relies on only one sexual assault referral centre, foundation raises alarm

Kano State, with an estimated population of over 15 million people, currently relies on only one Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) to serve its 44 local government areas, a situation advocates say leaves thousands of survivors of gender-based violence without timely medical care, psychosocial support and access to justice.

This concern was raised on Saturday at the Kano Gender Justice Summit 2025, organised by the Lift Africa Foundation as part of Nigeria’s commemoration of the United Nations 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.

Founder of Lift Africa Foundation, Barrister Aisha Hamman, described the gap in survivor support services as not just a legal failure but a human one, warning that delays in access to care and justice deepen trauma and silence victims.

“Kano is home to more than 15–16 million people, yet the entire state depends on one Sexual Assault Referral Centre. One centre for 44 local government areas,” she said.

Hamman noted that Nigeria enacted the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act in 2015 to criminalise rape, domestic violence, emotional abuse and other harmful practices, but ten years later Kano is yet to domesticate the law.

She said the absence of a comprehensive legal framework, combined with limited referral centres, has weakened coordination, reduced resources for survivors and slowed prosecution of offenders in one of Nigeria’s gender-based violence hotspots.

According to her, Lift Africa Foundation has supported over 3,000 children back into education, empowered more than 5,000 women with livelihood support, and facilitated justice processes that secured 32 convictions in Kano and 86 across northern Nigeria in cases involving minors and adolescent girls.

She added that the organisation played a key role in the advocacy that produced the harmonised VAPP provisions now contained in the Kano State Penal Code Amendment Bill of 2021, which is still awaiting passage.

Hamman urged the state legislature to prioritise the bill, expand Sexual Assault Referral Centres across Kano’s emirate councils, strengthen prosecution processes and address emerging challenges such as digital and technology-facilitated abuse.

Also speaking at the summit, the Commander General of the Kano State Hisbah Board, Sheikh Aminu Ibrahim Daurawa, represented by Malam Gaddafi Mujiburrahmah, said Islam clearly prohibits all forms of violence and injustice against human beings.

He disclosed that within just one week, the Hisbah Board received 49 matrimonial disputes and 39 civil cases requiring mediation, alongside cases involving counselling, pregnancy-related issues and drug abuse.

“These figures show that violence and abuse are no longer distant problems; they are at our doorstep. Tackling them must be a collective responsibility,” he said.

Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, represented by the Director-General of the Kano State Social Protection Agency (KASEPA), Fatima Amneef, said the state government was ready to work with civil society organisations to strengthen protection and justice systems.

“We have 44 local government areas, and violence is everywhere. We need collaboration, not to blame. From today, we are ready to take action and ensure full implementation,” she said.

The summit also featured the launch of the Kano Community Declaration for Protection and Justice, a multi-stakeholder accountability framework aimed at improving survivor protection, expanding referral systems and strengthening community responsibility across the state.

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