Lagos State Unveils Workplace Guidelines Against Sexual Harassment
The Lagos State Government has launched new guidelines aimed at preventing and addressing sexual harassment in workplaces across the state.
The framework, developed by the Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency (DSVA), was unveiled at a symposium on “The Impact of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence on Labour and Productivity in the Workplace.”
Speaking at the event, the Executive Secretary of DSVA, Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, described Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) as both a social and economic crisis.
“SGBV is not just a social ill; it is an economic wound. It disrupts workplaces, diminishes employee morale, reduces efficiency, and erodes productivity,” she said.
Vivour-Adeniyi revealed findings from a DSVA survey conducted in September 2025 among 549 respondents across public and private sectors. The report showed that over 70% had personally experienced sexual harassment, while 89.3% knew someone who had faced it. Alarmingly, 48.4% said their first experience was before age 12, while only 4.5% reported never experiencing harassment.
She stressed that the new guidelines provide a comprehensive framework for organisations to foster workplaces of dignity, respect, and inclusivity, while ensuring survivors have access to legal aid, psychosocial support, healthcare, and shelter.
Vivour-Adeniyi also referenced Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s directive that “silence is not an option and inaction is not acceptable,” calling on business leaders, HR professionals, labour unions, and stakeholders to view safe workplaces as both a moral duty and an economic driver.
“Workplaces should never be spaces of fear or intimidation. They must be havens where every worker – man or woman – can thrive,” she said.
Private and public sector leaders at the event commended the initiative. Adebola Surakat, Chief Marketing Officer of AXA Mansard, lauded the collaboration with businesses, while Dr. Kemi DaSilva-Ibru, founder of the Women at Risk International Foundation, called for credible data to drive interventions.
“Men lie. Women lie. But numbers don’t lie. Silence is not an option in the fight against sexual and gender-based violence,” DaSilva-Ibru said.
Similarly, Dr. Princess Omolara Oyekan-Olumegbon, Chair of the Lagos House Committee on Women Affairs, Poverty Alleviation and Job Creation, pledged legislative backing to strengthen worker protections, urging that “gender-based violence should not be tolerated in workplaces, homes, or society.”
The guidelines mark a major step in Lagos State’s efforts to combat SGBV and promote safer, more productive work environments.
