Role of Education in Promoting Gender Equality and Women Empowerment: Implication for Social Justice and Development in Nigeria

Abstract

Equal educational opportunities for all have been the major concern of well-meaning individuals all over the world.  As a result, governments and non-governmental agencies are poised to propagate the gospel through policy provision, advocacy, etc., which encourage participants to appreciate the need to receive functional education at different levels of education.  In Nigeria, efforts that will encourage better participation and invariably lead to national development was put in place through the review of the Nigeria’s National Policy on Education (FGN 2013).  The changes in this policy document became imperative as a result of the demands from international bodies such as United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Education for All (EFA), and other interested citizens, etc.  This study examined the role of education in promoting gender equality and women empowerment using critical indicators such as enrolment and graduation rate at the primary, secondary and open and distance learning in Nigeria.  The paper contends that the attainment of gender equality and women empowerment are sine qua non to effective education policy implementation and monitoring.  It was therefore concluded that the obvious implication for social justice and development in Nigeria can be sustained through well articulated education for all.

Keywords: Gender equality, Women empowerment, social justice, Nigeria, development.