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January 2, 2025
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August 29, 2025
Published
August 30, 2025
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Abstract

Gender equality and gender-based violence have become global public health and social concerns, as they touch all aspects of human relationships. This study investigated the relationship between socio-demographics and public perceptions of gender equality and gender-based violence in Nigeria. Data were drawn from Afrobarometer Round 9 for Nigeria (2023). 1,600 participants, drawn from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and the 36 states of the federation, were the sample for the study. We deployed statistical tools such as frequency, percentage, mean, t-test, correlation, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) for data analysis. The results showed that socio-demographics significantly shaped public perceptions of gender equality and gender-based violence in Nigeria. Addressing disparities rooted in age, education, income, and geography is crucial to fostering an equitable society. Targeted interventions, particularly in education and economic empowerment, can transform public perceptions, ultimately leading to a decrease in gender-based violence and an advancement towards true gender equality. The challenge remains in capturing the diversity of Nigerian experiences while promoting awareness and advocacy efforts that resonate across different demographics.

Keywords

Gender-based violence gender equality perception Nigeria socio-demographic

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Copyright (c) 2025 Razaq O. Azeez, Olukayode F. Oyenuga, Olufunmilayo Toyin Iyunade, Ayodeji Peter Ifegbesan, Hakeem F. Kazeem

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Author Biographies

Razaq O. Azeez, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria

Razaq Olugbenga AZEEZ, an Associate Professor at Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria, teaches both undergraduate and graduate students. He holds a PhD in Applied Psychology and has published over 50 articles in national and international journals. He maintains strong partnerships and collaborations with community groups, local government areas, state agencies, and non-state actors. His research interests include workplace dynamics, vocational development, education, creativity, emotional management, and peacebuilding. He has skills in both qualitative and quantitative analysis and has served on consultation teams for donor agencies on topics such as gender mainstreaming, prefeasibility studies, budget analysis, climate change and adaptation, and project evaluation.

Olukayode F. Oyenuga, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria

Olukayode Felix OYENUGA is an Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria. He earned his Ph.D. in Philosophy with bias in ethics, African belief systems, political analysis, education, development, and gender concerns. He has, to his credit, over 40 articles published home and abroad in reputable journals, edited books and edited conference proceedings. He is a member of numerous professional associations and has made significant contributions to the body of knowledge in his area of specialization.

Olufunmilayo Toyin Iyunade, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria

Olufunmilayo Toyin IYUNADE, an Associate Professor at Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, earned her Ph.D. in Adult Education from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. Her area of specialisation is Community Development. Her areas of interest are non-formal education, human rights and democratic governance (gender neutrality in politics), technical capacity building and skill acquisition for community and national development and sustainability, pedagogy, teacher education, higher education, and supervision. She has been teaching for over two decades.

Ayodeji Peter Ifegbesan, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria

Ayodeji Peter IFEGBESAN, is a Professor of Social Studies and Environmental Education at Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Nigeria. He holds a doctorate degree in Environmental Education from the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. His research interests include human-environment interaction, aspects of Social Studies, curriculum development analysis, teacher education, environmental education, gender issues, waste management, recycling, natural resource conservation, and sustainable development goals-related topics. He has over 80 articles in national and international peer-reviewed journals, conference proceedings, and chapters in books. 

Hakeem F. Kazeem, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria

Dr. Hakeem Fola KAZEEM teaches at the Department of English Language, Faculty of Arts, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Nigeria. His areas of specialisation include oral poetics, literary criticism and English/African poetry. He has authored several articles in many prestigious research journals both in Nigeria and Overseas. 

How to Cite
Azeez, R. O., Oyenuga, O. F., Iyunade, O., Ifegbesan, A. P., & Kazeem, H. F. (2025). Perception of Gender Equality and Gender-based Violence in Nigeria: A Socio-demographic Analysis. Pan-African Journal of Education and Social Sciences, 6(2), 89–102. https://doi.org/10.56893/pajes2025v06i02.07
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