Visionary Reports

For the 19th International Day for the Elimination of Violence against , Women Ministry for the Promotion of Women and the Family (MINPROFF) convened media representatives and social actors in Douala on Tuesday, November 25, 2025. This year, the message is stark: online gender-based violence is reaching alarming proportions.The 19th edition of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence highlights an undeniable reality: violence is shifting massively to the digital realm. In the digital age, social media platforms have become breeding grounds for insults, threats, harassment, smear campaigns, and other forms of aggression targeting women.Ngobe Gisele epse Ekooh, MINPROFF’s Littoral Regional Delegate, did not mince words regarding the severity of the online climate. “The rhetoric is extremely violent. After the presidential election, we saw what is happening on social media.” This observation underscores the ease and speed with which hate and aggression can spread online.According to MINPROFF data, nearly 1,500 cases of violence against women have been officially recorded in recent months. This figure is continuously climbing and increasingly encompasses specific digital forms of abuse, including:Cyberbullying, Non-consensual sharing of intimate images (Revenge Porn),Online threats and intimidation and Digital blackmail.In response to this alarming development, a bill on violence against women is currently being drafted and is soon expected to be submitted to the National Assembly. This legislative step is highly anticipated, as it is crucial for better regulating and prosecuting these new, complex forms of digital violence.Support from civil society organizations is vital in complementing government efforts. Claudelle Yougang, President and Founder of the NPOWA (Nurturing the Power of Women’s Aspirations) Association, detailed her organization’s mission: “The goal of NPOWA is to be a platform that provides a supportive system to accompany women who find themselves in a very difficult position. Many women are going through a lot in their relationships, families, or other circumstances and are not able to talk about it. Our first step is to provide them with a safe space to express themselves.”NPOWA plans to support women by:First, understanding and supporting the existing framework and actions already put in place by MINPROFF.Leveraging its website and digital platforms to meet people where they are—online. Yougang emphasized, “We’re going to really leverage on where people already are to be able to reach them, to be able to talk to them, to be able to pass on the message.” Stressing that the objective is not to segregate, Yougang noted that the association actively seeks the support of men, recognizing the issue as a societal problem. “These women are our sisters, they are our mothers, they are our daughters. And we really need everybody to be on board.”This edition of the 16 Days of Activism underscores a critical urgency: the protection of women is no longer limited to physical spaces. The fight against gender-based violence must now decisively extend to digital platforms, which have rapidly become veritable battlegrounds for daily aggression.

By Henry Wana