IGP approves hijab for female police officers
The Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, has approved the use of hijab by female police officers.
This was contained in a statement signed by the Acting Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Aladejobi.
According to the statement, the new dress code – which was approved at the IGP’s meeting with strategic police managers on Thursday – was in line with international best practices.
“The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, psc (+), NPM, fdc, has approved a new and improved dress code for Women Officers which permits them to wear stud earrings, and headscarf under their berets or peak caps as the case may be while in uniform.
“The IGP noted that the Nigeria Police workforce has officers from every local government in the country with a variety of ethnic and religious backgrounds, and an increased inclusion of female folks. This therefore brings the need to guarantee inclusion, gender mainstreaming, ethnic and religious diversity in the work place for optimum output and professionalism. This has informed the improvement for effective global workforce diversity management. Other countries that have adopted same dress code include Canada, the United States of America, Sweden, Turkey, Australia and the United Kingdom amongst others,” the statement read.
The IGP said in the statement that while the uniform was not compulsory, senior women police officers were tasked to ensure compliance with women who want to adopt the new policy.
“The Inspector-General of Police noted that this development, which is in line with international best practices addresses the growing concern for gender mainstreaming and respect for culture and diversity,” the statement added.
