By Amanatullah Yusuf
Nafisat Adebayo, 29, is one of the women that have broken the jinx of ‘women belong to kitchen and other room,’ with multiple businesses to her name. Nafisa is an influencer who doubles as a manager. She founded Ano Modest Fashion owns the Modest Modelling Agency and Show which is the first modest fashion show in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo state.
Since time immemorial, women have been told that manning the kitchen and taking care of the household are the primary purpose of their existence. And that in their marital home, they should only keep the house clean and and take care of the children. Anything aside that is out of their territory.
But many are defying this narrative. Some women are working tirelessly to break the gender barriers which have caged them and let fly away many dreams. But not without cost. Some of these women who work and compete with the other gender in the labor market are often deserted by men for being over ambitious, leaving them single — sometimes unmarried — for a long period.
Despite all this, some women do not allow this societal abnormalities to cripple their ambition. One of them is Nafisat. Everyday, she wakes up in the middle of the night to bake; during the day she ventures into the decoration business and she trains models. Though making things work out has not been easy, she said she is persevering and it is paying off for her.
“It has not been easy. I have faced numerous hurdles, beginning with being a single woman and how I succeed in what I do. Look at Hilda Baci [referring to a Nigerian woman who recently cooked for 100 hours to break a Guinness World Record for longest cooking time]. She had a dream and built confidence. She started with fear but embarking the journey with audacity birthed her success,” said Nafisat.
Like Nafisa, Shakiroh Bamidele, 21, is a public speaker, writer/poet and a gender advocate from Oyo, a town in southwestern of Nigeria. Shakiroh is making an impact on young girls in the country. She builds courage in young females and creates awareness on women’s rights and why they are not chattels.
“I had years of pain and struggle, years I thought I wouldn’t be heard or seen. Many have seen what I do as a joke. My resilience is a success for me,” said Shakiroh.
According to a report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NNBS), the employed population was 46 million: 20 million for women and 26 million for men. Informal employment was fixed at 43 million, with 18 million being women and 25 million men.
In this report, the number of unemployed Nigerians was approximated to be 23 million; with 12 million for women and 11 million for men. This shows that the males are enjoying the labor market compared to their female counterparts.
Fulfilling Fate with Disability
Fatima Giwa Abdulrahman, 39, is an autism parent coach who specializes in advocating for children with special needs. Mrs. Giwa, an author who resides in Cape Verde Island City of Praia, started her journey as a parent coach some eight years ago when her two-year-old son was diagnosed with autism. She started sharing her experience, using her voice to educate others about autism.
She used social media to preach the gospel which reaches thousands of audiences on how to curtail the challenges of taking care of children diagnosed with autism.
“All we have is our stories, voices and each other as women supporting ourselves through this dark and lonely journey of parenting a child with special needs,” Fatimah said.
Gender Advocate
Despite the rise and evolution of feminism, most Nigerian households are patriarchal, stamping their foot down on female liberation, growth and education.
Speaking with Taoheed Adegbite, a gender rights advocate, said, “I personally don’t think drawing limitations still benefit anyone in today’s world. Either to satisfy patriarchal ego or personal inferiority complex. It inflicts burdens and reduces life expectancy of men.”
Adegbite reiterated that gender equality is never a war with men and not even about women in particular but somebody must be there to ensure nobody’s rights are subjugated on the basis of unfair gender orientation.
“One thing is for society to cook stereotypes and set boundaries and bondages if I may say, another is women’s emancipation that firmly breaks barriers. Many women are making the world a better place for both genders. Many women are changing narratives and that is why we need women, so men don’t have to sacrifice themselves to protect societal norms that promote women’s rights subjugation.” Said Adegbite.