The Edo State Government says it is currently handling more than 72 child abuse cases, with many of the reported sexual abuse cases involving fathers and their minor daughters.
Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Ms Eugenia Abdallah, disclosed this in Benin while reviewing the ministry’s activities between October 2025 and August 2026. She said the government was providing medical and psychosocial support to victims while pursuing investigations and prosecution of alleged offenders.
Abdallah said the state had inaugurated a Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Uromi and was working to establish another in Auchi, with the aim of ensuring that all three senatorial districts have access to such services. She added that the ministry had strengthened efforts against cyberbullying, online harassment and technology-facilitated abuse.
The commissioner also disclosed that the state had introduced a digital child welfare case-management system, reviewed its 2026 Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy, shut down an allegedly illegal children’s home in Owan East and rescued and reunited children with their families.
Beyond child protection, Abdallah said the ministry had trained and supported women with business grants, promoted menstrual hygiene and strengthened campaigns against gender-based violence and female genital mutilation.
She said the ministry also continued programmes for vulnerable persons, including mental-health support, vocational training and drug-abuse rehabilitation, while working with partners such as IOM, UNICEF and GIZ to strengthen social protection services across Edo.
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