...Founder Raises Global Alarm on Femicide at “Connecting the Dots” Forum
Over the past 18 months, the DOHS Cares Foundation has successfully rescued 216 women and children from abuse cases ranging from domestic violence and sexual assault to attempted femicide and child abuse.
Founder Ololade Ajayi shared this milestone while addressing the rising tide of femicide at the international digital forum “Connecting the Dots,” convened by Nalini Saxena on July 18, 2025. The forum fosters interdisciplinary dialogue and solutions around urgent social justice issues.
Ajayi’s presentation, titled “Unseen, Unheard, Uncounted: Femicide and the War on Women,” wove together poetry, data activism, and global comparative analysis to spotlight the brutal realities many women face. She cited UN Women’s 2023 statistics, which revealed that over 85,000 women and girls were intentionally killed worldwide, with Africa bearing the highest burden of femicide.
In Nigeria, the crisis continues to escalate. The DOHS Femicide Observatory recorded 150 femicide-related deaths in 2024 and has documented 88 cases in just the first half of 2025, translating to one woman killed every 49 hours, often by an intimate partner, relative, or acquaintance.
“Femicide is war—a war on women’s right to breathe and to be. Every life rescued is a life reclaimed from violence. Every child saved from abuse is a future restored,” said Ajayi.
As she celebrated DOHS’s rescue milestones, Ajayi also issued a stern warning: the crisis is far from over. She called attention to persistent gender-based violence and child abuse across Nigeria, the absence of femicide-specific legislation, the spread of misogynistic online InCel communities, and the desperate need for Safe Spaces for survivors.
Ajayi emphasised that without accurate data, legal frameworks, and meaningful protections, this silent war on women will continue unchecked.
She concluded with a powerful call to action, urging individuals, communities, and government bodies to fund grassroots organisations like DOHS Cares Foundation. Only through sustained intervention, she noted, can safety, dignity, and justice for survivors become a lived reality.
