By Uboh-Ekong Treasure
Rights campaigners are sounding the alarm over what they call a growing femicide crisis in Lagos and across Nigeria, urging lawmakers to recognise gender-motivated killings as a distinct crime and take urgent steps to protect women and girls.
Figures from the Nigeria Police Force show that more than 17,000 gender based and domestic violence cases were handled nationwide in 2024, though the data does not specify how many resulted in deaths. In Lagos, the state’s Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency (DSVA) confirmed five fatal domestic-violence cases last year.
Civil society organisations argue that these official figures barely scratch the surface. The DOHS Cares Foundation, which operates Nigeria’s first Femicide Observatory, reported 88 verified gender-related killings of women across the country in just the first half of 2025. Its Executive Director, Olusola Owonikoko, described the pattern as “systemic, gender-driven and preventable,” warning that Nigeria urgently needs a legal definition of femicide so that such cases are properly tracked and punished.
Public outrage has been intensified by recent tragedies, including the murder of Christiana Idowu, a 21year old university student who was abducted and killed despite ransom being paid, and Bamise Ayanwole, a 22-year-old fashion designer whose death after boarding a government-owned BRT bus sparked protests and renewed debate about women’s safety.
Campaigners such as Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi of the Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC), Oluwaseun Ayodeji Osowobi of the Stand to End Rape (STER) Initiative, and the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Lagos Chapter have been at the forefront of lobbying for legal reform. They argue that femicide must be explicitly recognised in law to ensure accurate data collection, stronger prosecution, and accountability for perpetrators.
“These killings are not random; they are targeted acts of gender violence,” said Dr. Akiyode-Afolabi. “Without naming and counting femicide, we cannot fight it. Lawmakers must act before more lives are lost.”
Other organisations such as Mirabel Centre, WARIF, and Project Alert continue to document cases, provide survivor support, and raise awareness across Lagos communities, underscoring that the crisis is not just a legal issue but a public health emergency.
Activists insist that recognising femicide in law would close data gaps, encourage survivors and families to come forward, and drive policy change that could save lives. Until that happens, they warn, women and girls remain at risk and the killings continue every two days.
