UN Women in Nigeria convenes the maiden edition of the Nigeria Media Partners’ Conference as part of its campaign against GBV and gender inequity
By Ayorinde Oluokun/Abuja
As part of activities to commemorate the 2023 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence, the United Nations (UN) Women in Nigeria last Monday brought top journalists across all segments of the media together in Abuja for its maiden edition of Nigeria Media Partners’ Conference. Held under the theme “Escalating Media Action for Women’s Empowerment, Ending Violence Against Women and Girls”, the Conference was organized to forge a strong partnership with the in the battle against gender inequality and gender-based violence in the country.
The Conference was also in tune with the assigned responsibilities of UN Women such as engendering Gender and Participation in Public Life, Women’s Economic Empowerment, Women’s Peace and Security and Humanitarian Action, as well as Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls.
Speaking at the conference while delivering her opening address, the UN Women representative to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) noted that the much desired socio-economic development of Africa will remain a mirage as long as issues of gender imbalance, exploitation and violence against women and girls on the front burner: “The UN is supporting the government of Nigeria in addressing its challenges and realising its development aspirations and transformative change. We cannot do this effectively without the support of the media. We need stronger partnerships, and the media is at the top of this need,” she said.
Traditional rulers at the conference of the UN Women
Eyong noted that the media can help accelerate the bid by the United Nations to achieve the gender goals and targets in the SDG by focusing more on issues related to gender advocacy women’s empowerment and reporting actively to dismantle harmful traditions and social norms that inhibit equal opportunity, justice, and fairness and promote violence against women and girls.
“The executive, legislative and judicial arms of the government will enforce gender-responsive laws if the media insists. Your power as media is limitless. Justice for survivors of gender-based violence will not be denied or delayed if the media closely monitors the judiciary,” she said. “In Nigeria, we can channel the influence of the media to amplify the advocacy for equal opportunity and women’s empowerment. With the press behind us, we will make massive progress in breaking down barriers to gender equality, and more gender-based violence offenders will be put in jail.”
She further advocated that the media should do more to that the media should do more to encourage women by regularly profiling high female achievers across all segments of society to motivate other women. Eyong reiterated that the call for gender equality does not entail challenging men of their positions, but asking for equal opportunities for women for the overall advancement of society and humanity: “We are not talking about women taking over men’s position but to provide equal opportunities to women just as men, removing the inequalities that block people from progressing.”
Speaking in the same vein, the National President of the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) Aisha Ibrahim, said the Conference by the UN Women could not have come at a better time. She noted that the roles of the media as the fourth estate of the realm in the battle against gender violence and inequality have been will cut out. “Our role is clearly cut out for us, which is to lend voice to the voiceless and act as an unbiased umpire in driving awareness about violence against women and girls. This conference is very dear to us as NAWOJ, we are strategically placed, and we have a critical role to play to ensure that all forms of violence are reduced to the barest minimum,” Ibrahim said.
Also speaking, UN Women’s Deputy Country Representative to Nigeria, Lansana Wonneh appealed to the media to take up the task of the fight against gender-based violence and inequity beyond the 16 Days of Activism: “The media should collectively work together to achieve the purpose of the discussion, which is gender equality and the empowerment of women. The language has been, ‘Let us change the narrative; let us change the mindsets. And I want to change first the media: you have to write more articles appropriately. Aside from the opening speeches, there were also appraisals of the current attitude of the media to reportage of media issues during the panel sessions held during the conference, with suggestions for improvements.
Participants at the Conference
Lanre Arogundade, Executive Director, International Press Centre, IPC had set the ball rolling with reports of the surveys done on how the media portrayed and reported women who participated in the 2023 elections by the media. The surveys concluded that the media tend to have different standards for women and men in politics.
However, panellists at a session with the theme: Global Best Practices, Media Interventions and Ending Violence Against Women and Girls identified problems militating against effective reportage of gender issues by the media and suggested solutions. Questions such as the role of the media in changing the negative gender perception, promoting gender-responsive policies and battle against gender-based violence and the rejected gender bills by the National Assembly, and giving adequate coverage to women politicians came up during the panel session with top journalists as panellists.
The conclusion of the panellists on the high table and interventions by those on the floor was that media practitioners must be more dedicated, innovative and strategic in their reporting achieving the objectives of improving gender equality, eradicating gender-based violence, and advancement of equal opportunities for the female gender.
“We have our peculiarities that must be addressed. A woman who is unable to access healthcare facilities at the time she needs it is a nation in distress. You cannot talk about national development without including the woman. There is a need for us to close the gap and the time to do that is now, close the gap of education, gap of the economy and other various sectors,” veteran journalists and Executive Director of the International Society of Media in Public Health, Moji Makanjuola noted at the conference during one of her interventions.
Also, HRM Eze (Dr) Onyie Cosmas N. Agwu, the Enechi Ekuma IV Okposi Kingdom in Ohaozara, Ebonyi State, assured the media of support from traditional rulers. He noted that the Nigerian government has committed itself to ensuring gender equality and fighting against GBV: “As you write to and speak, know you have the backing of the traditional rulers. Every Nigerian comes from a community. There is no community in Nigeria without a traditional ruler, if all of us are backing you, you should be bold enough to demand full right to our privileges,” said the traditional ruler.”
The Conference ended with the journalists making written commitments on the innovations that they adopt going forward in the battle against gender inequality and gender-based violence in the reports.