Understanding Gender Equality
Written by Leke Kalejaiye
The theme for this year’s commemoration of International Women’s Day was #BreakTheBias. An aspect of this theme involves breaking the systems, ideals, and institutions that support inequality. The issue of inequality in all spheres of life is alarming; a nod to this is the sustainable development goal 5, which advocates for gender equality. The achievement of this goal is necessary for the optimal development of the nation, the community, and the person.
The concept of equality is riddled with misconceptions, myths, and misunderstandings. The issue with misconceptions is that they can go on for ages, which makes correcting them seem impossible. Thus, addressing these misunderstandings would clarify the concept of gender equality and illustrate its importance.
Equality is equal access to opportunities, resources, and choices. This does not mean women and men will be the same but that human rights will not be dependent on whether a person is born male or female.
Gender is the societal expectation, perception, views, behavioral patterns, and standards for males and females. An example is a stereotypical view present in many societies where a man is not expected to express his feelings; while all a woman is expected to offer is the role of a caregiver. These perceptions, usually gotten from upbringing, religion, and circumstances, lead to discrimination, stereotypes, and inequality.
Gender inequality violates the fundamental rights of women. It ensures a system of discrimination in the political, social, and economic spheres of daily lives. A vivid picture of what this perception looks like is the erroneous notion in many countries, including Nigeria, that leadership positions are better suited for men.
Furthermore, there are common myths about gender equality that should be disproved. One of these is the belief that gender inequality does not exist. This is a major misconception fueled by the thought that everything is normal and nothing needs to change, the status quo should remain the same. Using Nigeria as a case study; women account for more than 70% of those in extreme poverty in Nigeria; 7 in 10 women are unbanked with more than half of them financially excluded; women are underrepresented in the parliament with 4% representation and only make up 16% of the cabinet of ministers; and women still face exclusion in access to economic and social resources. Similarly, women only earn 77 cents for every dollar that men earn for the same work; and women account for most of Nigeria’s unemployed with Nigeria ranking 139th out of 156 countries in addressing the gender gap.
Additionally, women are not involved in the nation-building process. This includes education disparity between males and females; sexual harassment; child marriages; ill-treatment of widows; discriminatory practices. A report by Mckinsey indicated that the GDP would grow by 23% by 2055 if women participated in the economy to the same extent as men.
In recent times, there have been arguments concerning equality and equity with many taking opposing sides. Equity is about the fairness of treatment for women and men according to their respective needs. The essence of equity is to provide a level playing field while equality enables a person to operate on the playing field. In that sense, equity is a means to an end, the end, which is achieving equality. It is the process of achieving gender equality, which is done through affirmative action, gender mainstreaming, and gender-specific policies. Equity and Equality are both necessary to correct historical wrongs that put women in a disadvantaged position. These concepts are mutually exclusive and work hand in hand.
Gender equality has also been misunderstood to mean the hatred of the other party. It is seen as akin to misandry, which is the hatred of men. The push for gender equality is not synonymous with the exchange of words or a fight; rather, it is a call to stop discriminatory practices against women. Over time, there have been certain privileges given to men solely as a result of their gender, which may not seem like a privilege to the party that is not being discriminated against, thus, when there is a change in the set order there is the cry of foul play.
There is the common statement: “I am not a feminist so what is my concern about equality when equality only favors women?” This supports the misconception that advocating for gender equality is solely for the benefit of women. In reality, the push for equality not only breaks stereotypes attached to men and women but also changes the gender construction or roles of what is expected of a male or female. To join the fight for equality is standing up for every woman you know whether it is a friend, daughter, sister, mother, relative, or yourself. A stand for equality is a stand against unfair practices and treatment of females. It is a stand for the right of recognition, dreams, and aspirations of the girl child.
Gender equality does not overshadow merit. Instead, it calls for equal representation of women. The essence of a federal character is to ensure every ethnicity is sufficiently represented because no one understands the plight of a community better than someone from that community. This is similar to the gender quota, which ensures adequate representation and provides resources to ensure equal representation.
Thus, this does not mean that an unqualified person gains the position, but that the opportunity is given to a qualified person from an underrepresented group. For example, the gender equality bill, which was denied passage, may have been passed if there was adequate female representation in the national assembly. It is also necessary that certain ratios be allocated to women in public and private spaces because without this allocation, women would be denied the opportunity in places of leadership. Thus, the pedal would always swing in the favour of men.
Leke is an undergraduate at the University of Lagos. She is a movie enthusiast with a passion for writing to change the world. Connect with Leke on Twitter, LinkedIn and Medium.
Edited by Aminat Lawal
Aminat is a law graduate, feminist, writer and editor passionate about telling and reading stories about women. When she is not volunteering for a women’s rights cause, she works as a programs officer at a diversity, equity and inclusion consulting firm.
Published by Yetunde Onafuye
Yetunde is a storyteller, podcaster, and a graduate student with interest in the social and political history of post-independence Nigeria. She’s also the co-lead editor at Sisterly HQ. In her free time, she reads and reviews books, engages in social volunteering, and watches tons of dramas and TV shows. Connect with Yetunde on LinkedIn and Instagram.
