Nearly three years after the deadline for its expected adoption, Edo State’s roadmap for integrating the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda, the State Action Plan (SAP), remains unsigned on the desk of Governor Monday Okpebholo.
As of April 2026, this critical framework, designed to domesticate United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, is gathering dust while over a dozen other Nigerian states have already implemented similar plans.
Advocates, including the Journalists for Peace Network and the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP-Nigeria), are highlighting the significant cost of this “Edo Delay.” They argue that the unsigned SAP represents a missed opportunity for enhanced state-wide stability. The plan’s three core pillars – proactive mediation with women at the forefront, economic resilience through securing women’s marketplaces, and justice reform to dismantle harmful traditional practices – remain out of reach for Edo’s citizens.
WANEP-Nigeria has been actively pushing for the plan’s adoption, engaging with high-level officials including the Office of the First Lady on March 4, 2026. This advocacy comes as states like Borno, Delta, Rivers, Plateau, Gombe, Yobe, Adamawa, Bayelsa, Kogi, Kaduna, and Kwara have successfully launched their own WPS Action Plans. Most recently, Niger State adopted its plan on March 31, 2026.
The delay sparks questions about government priorities, especially when contrasted with Governor Okpebholo’s swift actions on infrastructure projects. Despite the administration’s “Renewed Hope” agenda and vocal intolerance for delays in road construction, the WPS plan, crucial for the social fabric, appears to be stalled by bureaucratic bottlenecks within the Ministry of Women Affairs and the Governor’s Office.
“A promise without a timeline is merely a platitude. Every day the WPS Action Plan sits unsigned is another day women in our rural communities remain excluded from security dialogues,” stated the Journalists for Peace Network.
While the First Lady, Mrs. Okpebholo Anani, has publicly expressed commitment to the plan, the absence of a signature raises concerns. The Journalists for Peace Network and the women of Edo are calling for immediate action, demanding a launch date for the WPS Action Plan rather than further “reaffirmations of commitment.”
They emphasize that the administration’s legacy will be judged not only by its physical infrastructure but also by the safety and inclusion of its citizens.
