16 Days Of Activism: JFC Sounds Alarm On Rising Digital Violence Against Nigerian Women
As digital spaces become central to public debate, they are also increasingly turning hostile for women.
This concern has taken centre stage as Journalists for Christ International Outreach (JFC) joins the global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, calling for urgent collective action to end digital violence against women and girls in Nigeria.
Marking the 2025 campaign themed “Unite to End Digital Violence Against Women and Girls,” JFC raised the alarm over the growing tide of online misogyny and technology-facilitated gender-based violence, particularly targeting women journalists and media professionals.
The call is anchored on findings from JFC’s #EndMisogynyNG media monitoring report, which reveals widespread use of abusive, sexualised and demeaning language against women across Nigerian social media spaces.
According to the report, these attacks are deeply gendered and often aimed at silencing women who speak out or occupy public platforms.
JFC noted a sharp rise in tech-facilitated abuses such as cyberstalking, doxxing, non-consensual sharing of images, sexualised hate speech and coordinated online harassment, enabled by weak policy enforcement and gaps in Nigeria’s legal framework.
The organisation, however, welcomed a major policy milestone in Lagos State, where a Draft Policy on Technology-Facilitated Sexual and Gender-Based Violence was launched on December 10, describing it as a step in the right direction.
Calling for action, JFC urged government agencies to strengthen legislation and invest in survivor support, asked social media companies to prioritise women’s safety online, and challenged journalists, civil society and faith-based groups to confront harmful gender norms and amplify survivor voices.
“Digital violence is real violence,” the organisation stressed, warning that online abuse carries serious psychological, economic and physical consequences and must be treated as a fundamental rights issue.
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