Eighty-nine men reported cases of domestic violence against their wives between 2020 and the first quarter of 2021, the Lagos State Government has said.
However, 664 women experienced domestic violence from their husbands within the period under review.
The men said they were battered and subjected to various degrees of violence by their wives.
The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA), Mrs. Cecilia Bolaji Dada, stated this at a ministerial briefing to mark the second year of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu in office, held at Bagauda Kalto Press Centre, Alausa Secretariat, Ikeja.
According to Mrs. Bada, 46 men reported at the ministry that their wives violated them in 2020.
She said 43 men reported battering by their wives in the first quarter of 2021, bringing the total number of domestic violence cases against women to 89 in less than two years.
She said the figure represented only cases reported to WAPA and that some cases may have been reported directly to the Ministry of Justice and police station which the ministry might not be aware of.
Mrs. Dada disclosed that 664 women were beaten by their spouses in Lagos and that the cases were reported at WAPA.
Giving a breakdown, the commissioner said 378 women were violated by their husbands in 2020, while 286 women were battered by their husbands in the first quarter of 2021.
She said that empowerment initiatives and poverty alleviation programmes of the ministry impacted the lives of over 48,000 residents of the state in the last two years.
Mrs Dada disclosed plans by WAPA to commence exposing its trainees to the use of technology.
She told the women that her ministry would also enlighten women on newer practices in vocational training, considering the effects of COVID-19 and the need to adapt to the new normal within the digital space.
She said: “In view of this, there will be a training of 500 women on entrepreneurial and digital marketing techniques come June 2021, as part of plans to mark this year’s International Widows Day.
“In addition, WAPA is equally expanding the scope of activities with a view to creating more avenues for our women to leverage on a professional platform.
“That is why 5,780 participants were incorporated into our Mega Empowerment initiative so that through their productivity, they can also contribute to the increase in GDP of Lagos State”, she added.
