Sunday Okobi
The Lagos State Government has launched a Religious Pre-Marital Counselling Online Course aimed at equipping faith leaders and marriage counsellors with the tools and knowledge to prevent domestic violence and promote healthy relationships.
Speaking at the launch in Lagos, the Executive Secretary of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency (DSVA), Mrs. Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, emphasised the importance of preventing domestic violence.
“We are not speaking about statistics alone. We are speaking about families, women who deserve dignity, men who deserve healthy relationships, and children who deserve to grow up in homes defined by love, not fear,” she said.
Vivour-Adeniyi highlighted the critical role of religious institutions in preventing domestic violence, noting that 80 percent of survivors in Lagos solemnised their unions through religious ceremonies.
“Faith institutions are uniquely positioned to prevent domestic violence before marriages even begin,” she stated.
She cited data from Invictus Africa’s Womanity Index 2024, which showed that 71 per cent of survivors experienced violence within the home, stressing the need for early intervention.
The course, accessible via safeguardingfamily.org.ng, covers 10 modules, including the foundations of marriage, emotional intelligence, safety and protection, and legal literacy.
The modules are facilitated by leading experts in family life education, psychology, and marriage administration.
These key modules include: “Foundations and Meaning of Marriage; The Science of Connection; and Safety, Protection and Ethics in Marriage,” which equip counsellors to identify early warning signs of abuse and promote dignity, safety, and justice within marriage.
According to Vivour-Adeniyi, the programme aims to achieve four major outcomes: standardisation of pre-marital counselling, prevention of high-risk relationships, promotion of social stability, and strengthening of partnerships between faith communities and government institutions.
The programme includes a strong Monitoring and Evaluation framework, with certification for religious counsellors, couple feedback, data tracking, and periodic updates.
“The issue of domestic violence is a collective responsibility. Government cannot do it alone. Faith institutions cannot do it alone. Families cannot do it alone. But together, we can build a culture where love never becomes violence, where homes remain safe, and where marriages flourish,” Vivour-Adeniyi stated.
The Lagos State Government also introduced the Relationship Health Clinic, which offers evidence-based interventions for couples, including safe dating, pre-marriage, and marriage clinical intervention services.
The clinic uses the RELATE Protocol, a diagnostic framework evaluating five key dimensions: Relationship Equity, Emotional Literacy, Accountability & Ownership, Trauma-Informed Evaluation, and Escalation Dynamics.
She praised the state Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, for demonstrating the requisite political will to reduce domestic violence in the state to the barest minimum.
The initiative is part of the government’s Zero Tolerance Policy for Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, aiming to prevent violence and promote healthy relationships in Lagos State.
The facilitators are Praise Fowowe, Mrs. Folashade Ajayi, an Imam, Pastor (Dr.) Emmanuel Temilade Oladele and Adekunle Omotayo Saheed.
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