Stakeholders on Monday validated the draft Edo Policy Framework on Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TFGBV), recommending technical inputs for incorporation into the final document before adoption by the state government.
The validation meeting was organised by the Edo Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development in collaboration with the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC) Programme in Benin.
The report states that the event brought together government agencies, the judiciary, security bodies, civil society groups, development partners and media representatives.
The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Dr Eugenia Abdallah, said the policy demonstrated the government’s commitment to strengthening protection systems for women, girls, children and other vulnerable groups.
She said the initiative complemented ongoing interventions, including strengthened referral pathways, Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs), public sensitisation campaigns and capacity-building programmes across the state.
According to Abdallah, the programmes also include media engagements, school outreach activities and community-based digital literacy campaigns aimed at preventing cyberbullying, online abuse and other harmful digital practices.
She emphasised that the state was intensifying efforts to address rising cases of cyberbullying, online harassment, cyberstalking, identity theft, impersonation, phishing, hacking, sextortion and non-consensual sharing of intimate images.
Abdallah said the offences increasingly affected young people, particularly students and other vulnerable groups, requiring stronger preventive measures and coordinated institutional responses.
She added that ongoing initiatives included collaboration with security agencies under the Cybercrimes Act framework, safer digital reporting channels, cyber safety education and partnerships promoting responsible online behaviour.
The Secretary to the State Government, Musa Ikhilor, said the emergence of artificial intelligence and deepfake technology had increased the complexity of digital harm, necessitating stronger preventive mechanisms.
Ikhilor said that cybercrime activities, including online fraud, identity theft, hacking, impersonation, phishing and cyberstalking, were increasingly being used to target women, girls and other vulnerable individuals.
He urged stakeholders to align the policy with existing legal frameworks, including the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law and the Cybercrimes Act, to ensure effective implementation.
A representative of the Office of the Edo Governor’s Wife, Nimata Ikhilor, described the policy as timely, noting that digital platforms, while empowering users, also enable harassment, blackmail, sextortion and cyber-enabled crimes.
She added that many of the offences were linked to broader cybercrime activities used to defraud, intimidate and manipulate victims through social media and messaging applications.
A legal representative, Mrs Esohe Bazuaye, said technology had become both a tool for empowerment and abuse, particularly against vulnerable groups, requiring coordinated legal and institutional responses.
Bazuaye commended stakeholders for developing the policy and reaffirmed the judiciary’s support for stronger inter-agency collaboration, institutional capacity and access to justice in tackling digital offences.
Presenting the technical framework, the Edo RoLAC Coordinator, Imonitie Omokhodion, said the draft policy provided a structured, survivor-centred and multi-sectoral approach to addressing technology-facilitated gender-based violence.
Omokhodion explained that the framework identified key forms of digital abuse while outlining institutional responsibilities, minimum operational standards and coordinated referral pathways across relevant sectors.
He said the policy strengthened school safeguarding systems by requiring institutions to establish reporting structures, safeguarding focal persons, confidential complaint channels and secured online reporting mechanisms.
According to him, the framework enhances multi-agency coordination for prompt escalation of cases through ministries, law enforcement agencies, social welfare services and justice institutions.
Omokhodion said the policy also introduced standardised digital evidence management procedures for preserving electronic evidence, including chat records, screenshots, IP logs and platform-generated data.
He highlighted engagement protocols designed to facilitate rapid reporting and removal of harmful online content through collaboration with telecommunications operators and social media platforms.
The framework also provides survivor-centred response mechanisms, including psychosocial support, legal aid services and referrals to Sexual Assault Referral Centres to prevent re-victimisation.
Stakeholders reviewed the draft policy clause by clause, making technical recommendations aimed at strengthening prevention strategies, institutional coordination, reporting systems, evidence management and survivor protection measures.
At the end of the session, participants validated the draft framework and agreed that approved recommendations would be incorporated into the final document before submission for government consideration.
The policy is expected to provide a comprehensive institutional framework for preventing, reporting and responding to technology-facilitated gender-based violence across Edo