Uni creates a channel for harassment reporting.

Prof. Abdulrasheed Na’Allah, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja, revealed that the institution recently terminated the employment of two academic staff members due to allegations related to sexual misconduct.

According to Punch, the Vice-Chancellor noted that the university has established a dedicated communication channel for students to report incidents of sexual harassment and other unethical behavior by lecturers.

Sexual harassment has been a persistent issue in Nigerian educational institutions, with a 2018 survey conducted by the World Bank Group’s Women indicating that 70 percent of female graduates from tertiary institutions in Nigeria experienced sexual harassment during their studies. The primary perpetrators were identified as classmates and lecturers.

In 2021, the Senate passed a bill stipulating a 21-year prison sentence for lecturers found guilty of sexual misconduct. However, many of the lecturers who were indicted and convicted following the bill’s passage were simply dismissed from their positions.

In 2022, UNIABUJA, Obafemi Awolowo University, and several other institutions took action by dismissing a total of four professors and 14 academics from various positions based on allegations of sexual misconduct.

The VC said, “We expelled two members of the academic community. We collaborated with NGOs most of whom pursue sexual harassment matters.

“Recently, there was a major conference on campus where students came out to expose some of the things that have been happening on campus.

“Right now as I speak to you, every University of Abuja student can report or comment on a lecturer via their student portal. Every student has this. They can comment on whether a lecturer is doing well in class, does he attend class, so it’s not only sexual harassment alone.”

The VC added that the varsity council also recently approved that students could assess their lecturers.

Source: https://ribdo.com/news/uniabuja-cracks-down-on-sexual-harassment-dismisses-two-lecturers

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