British Council trains social workers on how to handle sexual assault victims

The British Council in Nigeria has trained a group of medical personnel, counsellors and social workers on how to handle sexual assault cases.

The council announced this in a statement saying the training, which held in Abuja, lasted five days.

It was reportedly carried out with support of the European Union under the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC) programme.

The RoLAC programme is being implemented in the federal capital territory (FCT) and Kano, Lagos, Anambra, Edo, Adamawa.

Danladi Phlang, RoLAC national coordinator, said the training was centred on trauma counselling as well as forensic medical examination and documentation.

He said it was done with the aim of building the capacity and competence of medical personnel  to provide professional assistance to victims of sexual assault in the Sexual Assault and Referral Centres (SARCs) soon to be established in the FCT and Edo state.

“The Sexual Assault and Refferal Centres (SARCs) are victim-focused facilities that provide immediate medical treatment, counselling and follow up support to survivors of sexual assault, including support for their initial engagement with the legal system if the victim desires,” he said.

“The services that a SARC provides, rests upon the availability of trained social workers and counsellors; and medical personnel that are competent to deliver professional counselling and medical services to victims of sexual assault.

“The RoLAC supported training is therefore tailored to meet the needs of personnel that will work in the SARCs to be established on the FCT and Edo State to support victims of rape and sexual assault.”

Danladi said victims of sexual violence in Nigeria are often discriminated against and discouraged from reporting cases of rape due to the social stigma attached to being a victim.

He emphasised that even in the event of willingness to report, victims do not know how to go about it or where to turn for support.