Bridging the female gender’s socio-political and economic gaps in the rural areas of Nigeria through indigenous communication system

Abstract

Studies have long established that women are the more oppressed and subjected gender in Nigeria. Women daily face issues of structural sexual harassment, rape, domestic violence, economic and political inequality in Nigerian societies. This paper investigated bridging the female gender’s socio-political and economic gaps in the rural areas through indigenous communication system. Many factors account for why women, especially the ones in the rural areas suffer socio-political and economic inequality. Some of these issues border on marital problems, patriarchic issues, economic and financial problems and issues of violence against women as well as failure of media to proportionally report issues that concern women, especially those in the rural areas. Spiral of Silence Theory was adopted to explain this research paper. The theory posits that majority keeps silent in the face of overwhelming views expressed by the minority in order not to be seen as dissidents. However, the silent minority is actually the silent majority. The theory is relevant to this study because women are actually the silent majority, but keep silent because of many cultural issues that have been placed on women’s march to social justice and economic and political equality. The study, however, recommended that it is imperative for the indigenous communication media to shoulder the responsibility of mobilizing, enlightening, educating and informing the rural women of political activities in their communities, state and nation at large. When indigenous communication media shoulder the responsibilities of education and enlightenment, the widening economic and socio-political gaps among women in the rural areas are filled. Besides, education, enlightenment campaigns, mobilization and information, as responsibilities of indigenous communication media, empower women in the rural areas of Nigeria to become self-aware and weaponize their resolve to fight for social justice and economic and political equalities. Each local government in Nigeria should create an office space for a Chief Traditional Newsperson of their communities to strengthen indigenous communication system in Nigeria. to bring government actions, programmes, policies, and activities closer to women in the rural areas of Nigeria.