NGO trains Nkhata Bay policy actors on GBV

The NGO-Gender Coordination Network (NGO-GCN) on Wednesday trained Nkhata Bay-based policy actors on gender related laws and policies aimed at addressing issues women face in the country. 

NGO-GCN national coordinator Joseph Njala said although Malawi has enacted gender related laws and policies, most of them are not known by  policy actors.

“We want the district policy actors to facilitate the formulation of effective by-laws within the district,” he said.

Njala said his organisation noticed that women, who have experienced gender-based violence in the distric,t have limited access to justice.

“There are more cases in the communities which go unreported while other cases are not properly followed through. We are bringing awareness on these laws so that when the rights are violated, people should know where to report to,” he said.

The district’s gender officer Cecilia Kaunda said they are struggling with an increase in child marriages and issues of men neglecting their families.

She said the district is also recording high cases of divorce. “We are now on the ground working with traditional leaders and other stakeholders on addressing the issues,” said Kaunda .