People hail GBV interventions

People in Nsanje have commended Citizen Alliance for strengthening institutions and empowering women and girls to fight gender-based violence (GBV) in the district.

In an interview yesterday, Malemia Chief Forum secretary Matthias Chilumba said women and girls are now reporting GBV.

“Through Citizen Alliance, we learnt that a marriage can be terminated if one member misses the other partner for seven years, according to our Constitution,” he said.

Mlolo Chief Forum secretary Gift Khakana said more GBV victims are reporting cases to police.

“The interventions ended the culture of silence,” he said.

Nsanje district gender officer Edison Njembe said the organisation helped the office to record more child marriages.

“From January, we have recorded 336 child marriages in the district. This is because women and girls have been empowered to report GBV,” he said.

Citizen Alliance Nsanje district programme officer Pytheous Kaira said chiefs and local structures now know how to report GBV cases to relevant authorities.

With funding from the European Union, Citizen Alliance is implementing an Accelerating Effort Towards the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls Project under the Spotlight Initiative in the district.