Gender Equality for Sustainable Development in Nigeria: Using Adekunle Ajasin University in Nigeria as a Case Study of Tertiary Institutions

Abstract

Gender equality and empowering all women and girls is the fifth goal of the17 Agenda which the United Nations(UN)have laid out for global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be achievable between 2016 and 2030.The Agenda 2030 with 17 global goals was an improvement over the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)which applied to both developing and developed nations whereas SDGs is specially designed and endorsed by all countries under the United Nations to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. Nigeria, like many African countries, has been described as a patriarchal nation due to the domination
of men in many sectors of the economy. Being one of the signatories to the SDGs, Nigeria now has a task of creating a more gender-balanced society where women have equal opportunities, rights, and privileges like their male counterparts. Apart from the country-wide gender equality approach, universities and other institutions of higher learning in the country are also making efforts at ensuring a gender-friendly environment for Nigeria. This paper, therefore, through primary and secondary sources of methodology, examines the approach adopted by Adekunle Ajasin University in Nigeria towards promoting gender equality among the students and members of staff with a new orientation about gender equality in order to make it sustainable in the society through equal opportunities, rights and privileges in all spheres of the university life irrespective of sex without discrimination. This paper has implications for the Nigerian government as an eye-opener in prioritising genderbalanced policy in social, economics, and political areas for sustainable development.