PURPLE : Human rights group launches gender equality movement named ‘The 50/50 Campaign’

 Every day, across Nigeria, there are stories and reports around both men and women being victims of verbal and physical abuse, discrimination and restricted access to opportunities

Nigeria’s ranking on the Gender Equality Index is very low, coming in at 118 out of 134 countries. What this means is that men and women in Nigeria are consistently trapped in stereotypical gender roles that encourage negative behaviors and attitudes towards each other. Every day, across Nigeria, there are stories and reports around both men and women being victims of verbal and physical abuse, discrimination and restricted access to opportunities.

For the men, there is great pressure to meet societal demands of the idea of masculinity. With labels such as ‘provider’, ‘strong’, ‘aggressive’ etc placed on them. For women, there are learned stereotypes and perceptions that categorise women as weak’, ‘naïve’ and ‘inadequate’. These beliefs and mindsets are established from a very young age and passed on from generation to generation. This is why it is important to begin early to teach boys and girls about the benefits of respect, collaboration and positive partnerships for both genders from a young age.

This is why ‘The 50/50’ campaign was developed. We gathered from the PURPLE team (Organizers of the 50 /50 campaign) that their mission is to help young Nigerian men and women understand that relationships are partnerships and that gender equality and mutual respect is part of a progressive, modern and cool lifestyle. Eventually, the conversation will change and rebalance the language around gender inequality, creating a society that fosters mutual respect and collaboration between young men and women.

The organisers will further educate the next generation on the benefits of mutual respect for all. Addressing the subject of gender inequality and the behaviors that encourage the problem is an important part of our nation’s forward progression.

This exciting campaign will feature billboards, a hit song from top artists, television visuals. The idea is to demonstrate the importance of gender equality using clever visuals, cool language and innovative concepts.

The campaign will run for 3 months in Lagos, Enugu, Kano and Kaduna.

This is a feature by PURPLE