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Make a real difference...
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to communities across Africa.
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Share skills and knowledge...
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and sponsor children...
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to develop a better future
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...and change lives forever!
There are some seven million
children in Nigeria who don't go to school, the vast majority of them girls,
particularly girls in poorer
rural areas as it's a cultural norm in some areas of Nigeria that girls are
lower in status than boys. This is reflected in literacy rates of 72.1% but
just 50.4% for girls. Its also a social norm for girls in Nigeria to get married young
(the situation is worse for girls in northern Nigeria where
approximately 45% of them are married by the age of 15yrs and 73%
by the age of 18yrs), have families and help with the family income, and, as such, many girls are not encouraged to go to school,
which inevitably means fewer females become teachers, which, in itself,
discourages even more girls who prefer not to be taught by men.
Parents also prefer
early marriage for their daughters in case they become pregnant outside of
wedlock and bring shame to the family. Many girls from Nigeria are also trafficked
abroad with the support of their parents especially in communities where poverty
prevents them being provided for at home. For many girls in Nigeria outside of more cosmopolitan areas, marriage in
somewhat different than in the west. They hold a major role in bringing money
into the household, raising the children and maintaining the household alongside
other wives when in a polygamous marriage but rarely expect the martial
norms of companionship and intimacy associated with marriage. Indeed while they
maintain this major role, it's not assigned any value by males rather it being a
simple expectation.
Women also fare badly when the husband dies as traditionally all male
possessions are inherited by male offspring rather than the widow leaving her to
strive alone to maintain her family. Similarly when her father dies all his
possessions go to brothers excluding sisters. This cultural system is slowly
changing not least because more women are now encouraged to attend and stay at
school gaining an education making them an asset in the working sector and, as
they move into positions of influence, can further cultivate changes in
attitudes towards females in Nigerian society. Today there are new programs offering scholarships to girls in
Nigeria to undertake teacher training to promote girl engagement in education. There are also many charities you can
contact to help children in Nigeria as well as child sponsor programs.
Girls in Nigeria: Nigeria Children
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Girls in Nigeria: Child Sponsor Nigeria
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Girls in Nigeria: Volunteer in Nigeria
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Girls in Nigeria: Nigeria Profile
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