Sierra Leone’s First Lady, Fatima Bio has commented on the issues of Eliminating Rape and Building Safer Communities for Women and Girls as she strives to have the hands off our girls’ campaign as her priority.

She maintained that, she still stands for the fight against rape and other abuses against women and girls in the county.

Her statement reads; In the last few weeks, I keep picking up my computer to write my thoughts on rape and surviving it. Finding the right words to talk about such a sensitive yet critical issue is difficult. Oftentimes, while discussions on rape often provide healing for most women, it is also a point of trigger for many others.

As a woman and a mother to beautiful young girls, I hope to provide healing and support to the thousands of women and girls who have experienced sexual assault at some point in their lives.

Throughout my life, I have heard stories of sexual abuse from hundreds of women and girls. Becoming First Lady of Sierra Leone and interacting with many more families in the country and other parts of the world, I realized how these problems persist among almost all women from different races and backgrounds.

I followed countless times how these stories are perceived in the societies where these victims were abused. I saw how most cries for help went unanswered and the issues affecting the participation of these women and girls in nation-building.

I have also seen how other survivors of sexual violence are rising and taking bold steps to speak out. These survivors have not only joined the fight to prevent other women like them from becoming victims, but they are also champions of many of our nation’s development. They serve as nurses, doctors, lawyers, teachers, police and army personnel, and many other capacities. They are among our most cherished patriots.

And thanks to the stories and participation of many of these survivors in shedding light on sexual assault, Sierra Leone made and continues to make significant progress in the fight against rape and other sexual abuse-related cases. More local and international organizations support victims through several processes, including providing safe spaces to heal and further seek justice with legal support for the victims.

Despite these efforts, rape and other sexual assaults on women and girls remain a challenge for our country. Almost every day, more cases of rape are being reported, and we see the need for more advocacy and the protection of the rights of our women and girls.

This need inspired me to establish the Hands Off Our Girls campaign. In a country where it was taboo to speak publicly on menstruation and even sexual abuse, the Hands of Our Girls campaign became a platform for women and girls to discuss the extent of these discriminations and abuses openly. It allowed a new path for justice and healing of sexual violence victims in vulnerable communities.

I am proud of the immense efforts we continue to take on a local level through the leadership of my husband, President Julius Maada Bio.

Since 2018, his government has taken bold steps and prioritized education for girls, which led to a significant increase in girls’ enrollment in school, with girls now topping our national examinations in the NPSE, BECE, and WASSCE.

He also prioritized women’s participation in government, and for the first time in Sierra Leone’s history, we have more women in governance and decision-making positions in our country.

Even more so, we now have a sexual offense court to try and prosecute perpetrators of sexual violence across the country, another first in our nation’s history.

In my capacity as First Lady, I have engaged authorities, including religious and traditional leaders, on their role in preventing sexual violence in their respective communities.

On an international level, I advocated for a resolution on sexual abuse. In 2022, for the first time, through the United Nations, November 18 became World Day for the Prevention of and Healing from Child Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Violence.

One year on, this resolution has provided cooperation on access to justice for sexual violence survivors both locally and internationally.

While this is a significant step in the prevention of and healing from sexual exploitation, abuse, and violence, we should be reminded about the urgent need for communities to come together and take bold actions to prevent other women from becoming victims.

We can no longer wait for another woman or young girl to become the victim of sexual violence before marching to the streets and demanding action.

The need to eliminate sexual abuse in our communities requires daily and constant push for action and accountability.

We must continue to implement local policies to prevent sexual exploitation and provide continuous healing for others.

I hope to see more action-led initiatives to build safer communities for women and girls.

I hope to see the Hands Off Our Girls campaign become the peoples campaign.

Be your Neighbor’s keeper.

God Bless Sierra Leone.