Africa loses a generation every time we pretend not to hear a woman or child’s cry behind closed doors.

By Professor Douglas Boateng

1. There is an uncomfortable truth we must confront with honesty and courage. Domestic violence and predatory acts against young girls are no longer isolated tragedies confined to homes or communities. They have become a silent pandemic weakening the moral foundation of our continent.
2. ⁠Every girl who is violated, every woman who is beaten, and every child who cries in fear represents a failure not only of institutions, but of all of us. When we choose silence over action, excuses over justice, and cultural defences over accountability, we become accomplices to the suffering of the vulnerable.
3. ⁠Across Africa, we proudly speak of ubuntu, community, and collective responsibility. Yet too often, behind closed doors, children are assaulted, women are brutalised, and young girls in schools and universities encounter predators disguised as protectors. This is not who we claim to be. This is not the Africa we inherited. It cannot be the Africa we pass on.
4. ⁠Illegal mining provokes national outrage because its destruction is visible. But the violence inflicted on women and girls destroys lives in ways no camera can fully capture. A river poisoned by chemicals may one day recover. A spirit fractured by abuse may never fully heal.
5. ⁠The ministries responsible for Gender, Women and Children cannot win this battle alone. They require the full weight of public support, institutional resolve, community vigilance and a media landscape that treats these crimes with the urgency they deserve.
6. ⁠Let us be clear:
   Protecting women and children is not charity.
   It is justice.
   It is responsibility.
   It is the truest expression of our humanity.
7. Africa cannot claim progress while its daughters live in fear. The time has come for a collective awakening. Let our conscience rise above convenience, complacency and cultural excuses.
8. ⁠Our daughters and children are watching. Our future is waiting.
   Let us act.