Factors militating against gender mainstreaming in Nigeria

Abstract

Nigeria is essentially a patriarchal society. This entails that women are marginalized and subordinated to men in all aspects of life. Furthermore, the wellbeing, interests and overall issues affecting men are given priority over and above that of women. Yet, women constitute about a half of the Nigerian populace. Thus, they could be rightly described as a significant but neglected segment of the society. The need to rectify this imbalance informed this study. The paper which relies on secondary data identifies the following as factors militating against gender mainstreaming in Nigeria. These include culture and related issues of patriarchy and religion. It includes also the low access of women to education which encompasses women political and financial disempowerment. Additional factors include the nature of Nigerian politics, attitude of men to women in the work place and women themselves who embrace male dominance very uncritically. The paper recommends the following as the way out There is need for sustained and well articulated programme of cultural orientation and re-orientation. More females like their male counterparts should be sent to school. There is also the urgent need to empower women both politically and financially. Finally, the attitude of men to women particularly in the work place must change. All these are imperative if our quest for development will be realized, meaningful and all inclusive.

Keywords: Culture, Male dominance, Religion, Development