V4C Conference for men on gender equality holds November 2

In line with the goal of reinforcing men’s commitment to take action for women’s rights and gender equality, Voices for Change (V4C), a non-governmental organisation, is planning a two-day conference for about 300 men drawn from the organisation’s four focal states of Lagos, Enugu, Kaduna and Kano.

Billed for November 2, 2016 at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Festac Town, Lagos, the networking conference, which will feature men of different backgrounds, age and varying levels of influence, aims at sharing and analysing experiences of personal transformation and of influencing change in others within the family unit, school/college, workplace and community.

Speaking at a media briefing held in Lagos on Wednesday to herald the event, output lead, key influencer V4C Dennis Onoise, said: “We are working round the clock to involve policy makers who can help us with legal dealings so that when any man who must have been exposed in one way or the other violates the law, he will not go scot-free. You can hardly find an organization involving only men to promote gender equality in Nigeria, but this conference will help change and transform the traditional and religious mentality of men.

“In this conference, we are expecting men to come together and share their experiences. For example, I help my wife in pounding yam anytime I want to eat pounded yam. This is something not every man is proud of saying; that is why we need to bring men together who will in turn spread the awareness to their friends, neighbours, family, and the rest of them.”

Voices for Change is a five-year transformational change programme, tackling underlying systemic and structural causes of gender inequality and exclusion of young women in Nigeria. The initiative, which is strongly focused on developing an enabling environment for change, is set out to address and remove root causes of inequality and discrimination. A major component of the V4C programme is working with men groups, including men networks, religious/traditional leaders and media personalities.