Events
Jos Launches 2025 Global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence Campaign
The 2025 edition of the global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence (GBV) campaign was officially launched in Jos on Tuesday with a symbolic peace walk. The event brought together government officials, civil society organizations, international partners, and community leaders.
Organized by UK International Development, SPRiNG, Women for Positive Peace Building Initiative (WOPPI), the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), and the Plateau State Government, participants marched from Old Airport Junction to Secretariat Junction carrying placards and promoting messages of solidarity.
This year’s campaign, themed “End Digital Violence Against All Women and Girls,” draws attention to growing online threats such as harassment, stalking, non-consensual sharing of images, misinformation, and other forms of digital abuse affecting women and girls globally and in Nigeria.
Plateau State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Caroline Panglang Dafur, described the 16 Days of Activism as a crucial platform for protecting the rights and safety of women and girls.
“I feel honored to address us today on this special day in Plateau State. This administration is committed to safeguarding the rights of women and girls,” she said, adding that the state will carry out community sensitization, survivor empowerment, and advocacy activities over the next two weeks.
Mujidang Sitdang, Regional Director of SPRiNG North Central, highlighted the campaign’s relevance in Nigeria, citing ongoing security challenges affecting women and girls.
“Digital violence knows no boundaries. This campaign offers an opportunity for government, civil society, and communities to support women in achieving their goals and contributing to peacebuilding,” Sitdang said.
Dung John Hwyere, Program Officer at WOPPI, stressed the urgency of addressing violence amid rising abduction cases targeting girls.
“We call on everyone—men and women—to unite against violence. The federal and state governments must urgently rescue abducted girls and ensure their safety. These 16 days are for all Nigerians to act,” he added.
Plateau State NHRC Director, Kiyenpiya Mafuyai, described the campaign as a reaffirmation of decades of work toward justice and equality, emphasizing the growing concern over digital abuse.
“The campaign links the fight against GBV to the broader human-rights agenda,” Mafuyai said. She outlined planned activities, including stakeholder meetings, youth sensitization programs, community dialogues, and a human-rights rally on December 10, marking International Human Rights Day. She also commended partners such as WOPPI, ROLAC, Mission 21, and other Plateau-based CSOs.
Elder Justina Mike Ngwobia, representing WOPPI, called for increased inclusion of women in decision-making and the elimination of violence in all forms—political, economic, domestic, or digital.
“The world is changing. Women can no longer be left behind or violated. We appreciate our gender-sensitive government, but more must be done,” she said.
The campaign, running from November 25 to December 10, seeks not only to raise awareness but also to advance concrete steps to protect women and girls, strengthen community protection systems, and hold perpetrators accountable.
Advocates including Ambassador Bridget Dakyes, State Coordinator for the Women, Peace and Security Network, and Chairperson of Plateau State Gender and Equal Opportunities Commission, Barr. Olivia Dazyem, emphasized that the campaign is a call to sustained action.
The Jos launch sets the stage for two weeks of advocacy, empowerment, and a unified push for a safer, more just society for all.
Lingzhi Global Nigeria Ltd. has announced plans to hold the second edition of the Coffee Festival International Nigeria in Calabar, Cross River State, from October 30 to November 1, 2026, as part of efforts to promote coffee production and expand opportunities across the value chain.
The festival, organised in collaboration with the National Coffee and Tea Association of Nigeria, NACOFTAN, will be held under the theme, “Coffee Sustainability and Empowerment: Focusing on Women and Youth Development,” with emphasis on skills development, community development and job creation.
The Chief Executive Officer of Lingzhi Global, Mrs. Blessing Nanman, disclosed this at a stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja, saying the event would bring together coffee stakeholders, investors and international participants to explore opportunities in farming, processing, packaging, marketing and export.
“Farmers have gone to work. Some processors are already at the verge of breaking through. This is the time where we want to invite all investors, partners and international organisations to support us in the coffee industry,” Nanman said.
She said the maiden edition attracted participants from different countries, while the 2026 festival is expected to draw representatives from about 30 countries. According to her, the event would further define opportunities within the coffee value chain and encourage local consumption of coffee.
Nanman said Lingzhi Global was also expanding its coffee business through the establishment of coffee shops, noting that the outlets had become platforms where communities, families and people from different backgrounds could connect over coffee.
She said Cross River was selected to host the second edition because of its potential for coffee production and the state government’s efforts to expand cultivation through the distribution of millions of coffee seedlings.
Speaking on the forthcoming festival, Cross River State Commissioner for Agriculture and Irrigation Development, Hon. Johnson Ebokpo, commended Lingzhi Global for its role in promoting coffee and tea development in the state and for working with stakeholders to strengthen the sector.
He said the company had contributed efforts to improve farmers’ access to seedlings, knowledge and markets, describing its partnership with the state as important to the development of the coffee value chain.
“We are pleased to be collaborating with Lingzhi Global, organisers of the International Coffee Festival, and NACOFTAN,” Ebokpo said.
The commissioner said the festival would give Cross River greater visibility as a coffee-producing destination while creating opportunities for women and young people to participate in the industry.
“This is also an opportunity for us to use the festival as a platform to create jobs for our people, particularly women and youths, while providing them with opportunities to learn more and develop their skills,” he said.
Ebokpo said the coffee industry extends beyond farming to processing, packaging and export, stressing that young people could create businesses and develop their own brands by participating in different stages of the value chain.
He said Cross River has about 23,000 square kilometres of arable land suitable for coffee development and has the agro-ecological advantage of producing both Arabica and Robusta varieties. He added that the state plans to distribute at least 30 million coffee seedlings over five years.
President of NACOFTAN, Dr. Hassan Usman, said the festival would provide an opportunity for Nigerian stakeholders to exchange knowledge and technology with international players in the coffee industry.
“The Coffee Festival is not only Nigerian in inclusion, but international. We have people coming from Brazil, Indonesia, Kenya and all the countries. The globe will be around with us,” Usman said.
Usman also commended Lingzhi Global for taking stakeholders across the country and beyond to gain knowledge in coffee processing and marketing, saying the company had played a critical role in connecting Nigerian stakeholders with international opportunities.
He said stakeholders would use the gathering to strategise on strengthening the coffee value chain and changing the narrative around coffee production in Nigeria, while calling for greater participation from government agencies, investors and other stakeholders.
The 2026 Coffee Festival International Nigeria is expected to bring together farmers, processors, roasters, investors, experts and other stakeholders from Nigeria and abroad for three days of knowledge-sharing, networking and promotion of the coffee industry.
The streets of Jos echoed with a simple message on Saturday: peace is everyone’s responsibility.
As part of activities marking the 2026 International Day of Peace, the Women for Positive Peacebuilding Initiative (WOPPI) joined other peace organisations for a peace walk from Old Airport Junction to Secretariat Junction Bridge.
Holding placards calling for unity, dialogue and peaceful coexistence, participants took the message of peace to the streets and into the public space.
This year’s International Day of Peace, observed on September 21, is themed “Invest in Peace – For Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day.” The United Nations says the theme highlights the role of ordinary people as “everyday architects of peace.” (United Nations Peacekeeping)
For WOPPI Executive Director, Lantana Abdullah, the message is particularly important for Plateau, a state with a history of violent conflicts.
She said peace cannot be left to government or security agencies alone. Every citizen, she stressed, has a role to play.
“Every citizen residing in Plateau or beyond Plateau or in Nigeria must play their part in making sure we sustain and build enduring peace for everyone.”
Abdullah urged citizens to choose dialogue over confrontation, report responsibly and speak up when they see issues capable of threatening peace.
She also challenged negative narratives about Plateau, pointing out that people continue to live, work and build their livelihoods across the state despite its troubled past.
For WOPPI, women must also be at the centre of this process. The organisation works to strengthen women’s voices, train them as mediators and involve them in preventing and resolving conflicts within their communities.
The walk therefore carried more than placards. It carried a reminder: peace is not something people wait for others to create. It is something communities build—one conversation, one intervention and one peaceful choice at a time.
And in the words of this year’s global message, that investment must happen for everyone, everywhere, every day. (United Nations)
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