Like the rest of the world, Jigawa State is impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. Without the daily income people rely on, abject poverty is on the rise. That means paying for transportation to a hospital is even harder than before.
Because of the lockdown, our SARCs are seeing a real increase in the number of SGBV cases—domestic violence, rape of minors, all of it.
At the facility, health workers are scared of getting the coronavirus. It’s impacting the amount of time they spend with clients. Other providers have to stay home, taking care of their own children while schools remain closed. That leaves forensic examiners to counsel and care for SGBV survivors. At times, we’ve had to shut down our SARC completely.
We were forced to stop all home visits, as we limit contact until staff have proper protection.