EAC to set up joint taskforce and offender database to curb SGBV, cross-border crimes

The East African Community (EAC) is moving to establish a joint regional task force and an integrated sexual offender database to combat cross-border crimes and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV).

This follows resolutions made during the Second Joint Roundtable of Directors of Public Prosecutions (DPPs) and Inspectors General of Police from EAC member states, held in Nairobi this week.

The officials agreed to review and update their country's policies to improve justice outcomes and survivor protection, with the proposed regional database expected to prevent repeat offenders from exploiting weak cross-border systems and jurisdictional loopholes to escape accountability.

The urgency behind the regional push to tackle SGBV was stressed by statistics shared during the forum.

According to a World Bank report, nearly half of all women and girls in the region (42 per cent) have been subjected to physical or sexual abuse. South Sudan is among the worst-affected, with some of the highest rates recorded.

According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), locally, about 34 per cent of women have experienced physical violence since age 15 and 13 per cent of women have experienced sexual violence at some point in their lives

"Your presence reflects our collective commitment to tackling the most urgent and devastating forms of violence within the region," DPP Renson Ingonga told the delegation.

Similarly, Ingonga urged for serious cross-border crimes to be handled with a focus on the needs and rights of survivors, further suggesting that strategies to fight SGBV be fully integrated into the work of regional bodies such as the Eastern Africa Association of Prosecutors and the Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation.

On her part, Supreme Court Judge Njoki Ndung'u Supreme Court Judge Njoki Ndung'u encouraged justice-related bodies to introduce their own internal policies against sexual and gender-based violence as a way to promote accountability and fairness.

The roundtable concluded with a joint commitment to establish specific regional targets, timelines, and systems for institutional accountability.

Development partners, including GIZ and Lawyers Without Borders, pledged both technical and logistical support to enhance cross-border legal collaboration and deepen civil society participation.

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• Gender Based Violence
• Femicide
• KNBS
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• EAC to set up joint taskforce and offender database to curb SGBV
• cross-border crimes