Some 30 police officers based in Narok County have benefited from a training aimed at reducing Gender Based Violence (GBV) cases that are common in the county.
The training sponsored by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and held at a Narok town hotel saw the officers trained on how to investigate, prosecute and prevent GBV cases that are common during long school holidays.
Paul Ndambuki, an assistant Inspector General of Police said the training has imparted more knowledge to the police officers attached to GBV desk and expressed confidence that the police will help reduce such crimes during this long school holiday.
“Statistics show that Narok County is among the top counties in the country with many cases of GBV. This is why we preferred the officers in this county to be trained to deal with such cases in a professional manner,” he added.
One of the participants, Inspector John Kamau said the training was very appropriate and promised to train other officers who did not have a chance of attending the training.
“I am sure we will handle GBV cases in a more professional manner and as a result, help to reduce the crimes that are rampant during long holidays,” he said.
Another participant Corporal Sheilla Metto thanked the organisers for the opportunity to learn so that they can help reduce GBV in the county.
The training comes at a time when gender stakeholders have been challenged to work together to reduce Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) that is common in the county.
The Anti-FGM board chairperson Mrs Ipato Surum said the county is at 51 percent above the national average of 15 percent calling on all Community Service Organisations (CSOs), government institutions and religious organisations in the area to work together to bring the number down.
Other common GBV cases in the county are early forced marriages, child labour, teenage pregnancy and a recent trend where young boys are getting sodomised by people older than them.
By Ann Salaton
