Norms Lab (Norms Lab)

50% of all maternal deaths in the world occur in sub-Saharan Africa. In Nigeria, for every 1000 live births, 5 women die. This is one of the highest rates in the world, with an estimated 59,000 maternal deaths occurring in the country each year, accounting for over 34 per cent of global maternal deaths (WHO). In this episode, Hadiza Salele, a public health professional with over 8 years of experience implementing sexual, reproductive, maternal, and neonatal health programmes, and Dr Hameed Adediran, a medical doctor dedicated to reproductive maternal, newborn and child Health, discuss with the host, ⁠Emitomo Tobi Nimisire⁠, how social norms affect maternal healthcare and contribute to the high maternal mortality rate in Nigeria. 

For updates, follow the Nigeria Learning Collaborative for Social Norms on the following social media platforms:

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For enquiries and collaboration, email us at info@nigerialearningcollaborative.com.

Many people in West Africa lack access to comprehensive and accurate information on Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH). Traditional beliefs, stigma, and cultural norms often hinder open discussions and access to reliable sources. As a result, unintended pregnancy rates remain high, driven by limited access to family planning services and contraceptives. Maternal and child mortality rates are also elevated due to inadequate SRH care, including insufficient antenatal care, skilled delivery attendance, and postpartum care. Additionally, HIV/AIDS and STIs continue to be significant public health concerns in the region.

In this episode of normslab, we dive into Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH), promoting awareness and challenging the stigma surrounding these topics. We discuss what needs to be done to empower individuals to make informed choices about their sexual and reproductive health, ultimately contributing to better health outcomes.

The urban-rural divide in health is a major public health problem in Nigeria. People living in rural areas are more likely to experience poor health, have lower life expectancy, and have less access to healthcare. For example, the maternal mortality rate in rural areas is twice as high as in urban areas, and the infant mortality rate in rural areas is 15% higher than in urban areas. This is due to a number of factors, including poverty, limited access to healthcare, difficult terrain, and social norms. Social norms can play a significant role in shaping health outcomes, such as the social norm in some rural communities that discourages women from seeking healthcare during pregnancy and childbirth. The podcast episode will explore the urban-rural continuum in Nigeria and discuss the challenges of bridging disparities in health with Dr. Shittu of Breakthrough ACTION Nigeria, Dr karaunmata, the Deputy Director public health and Disease Control from Kano state ministry of Health

The podcast episode aims to explore a fundamental and transformative aspect of social change.  Families are the foundational units of society where values, behaviours, and beliefs are first instilled. Understanding and leveraging this influence is essential for driving meaningful and sustainable social change. This episode aligns with our focus on social norms, agency, and gender and provides actionable insights and inspiration from an experienced guest, Mukhtar Ibrahim-Gaya, who committed to fostering positive development outcomes

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Digital media has emerged as a powerful tool for addressing the maternal health crisis in Anglophone West Africa. It offers unprecedented opportunities to challenge the social and gender norms impacting interventions, raise awareness, and improve access to healthcare.

Dr. Valentine Amasiatu, senior research associate at SCIDaR, joins this episode's discussion to share his experiences/lessons learnt while leading the Antenatal Risk Stratification project to drive positive change in this sector.

You can follow us on X, LinkedIn and Facebook for more updates.

Gender norms—deeply ingrained societal expectations about the roles and behaviors of men and women—are increasingly influenced by the content, interactions, and algorithms that define our online experiences. While digital media has the potential to challenge and dismantle harmful stereotypes, it can also reinforce traditional gender roles, often in subtle yet pervasive ways.

Listen to Aminat Salaudeen, Women’s Rights & Safety Officer at TechHerNG, and Khadija Lawan, gender integration specialist, as they share their experiences on how digital media shapes gender perceptions and what this means for the broader goals of gender equality.

You can follow us on X, LinkedIn and Facebook for more updates.

In our latest podcast, "Social Norms, Child Health, and Nutrition," our guests, Dr. Aisha Faruk, Field Coordinator at AFENET, and Beatrice Eluaka, an independent consultant/nutritionist, led the discussions on the social norms that impact the nutrition of pregnant women and children.

During the conversation we discussed the connections between the health of pregnant and breastfeeding women, their socioeconomic status, education levels, and the nutritional well-being of children as well as the far-reaching consequences of malnutrition on developmental trajectories, ongoing policies and interventions combating this issue.

For updates, follow the Nigeria Learning Collaborative for Social Norms on the following social media platforms:

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For enquiries and collaboration, email us at info@nigerialearningcollaborative.com.

Social norms are common and varied in Nigerian communities. They profoundly impact our lives and the outcomes of development initiatives. This episode introduces the thematic focus of this series - An introduction to social norms and their impact. 

In this episode, Hasbiyallah Ahmed and Raihannah Ibrahim, two social norms experts, discuss with the host, Emitomo Tobi Nimisire, what social norms are and how they affect development in Nigeria. 

The following resources were recommended by the speakers in this episode: 

• Align platform
• The Social Norms Atlas: Understanding global social norms and related concepts

For updates, follow the Nigeria Learning Collaborative for Social Norms on the following social media platforms: 

• Twitter
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• YouTube

For enquiries and collaboration, email us at info@nigerialearningcollaborative.com. 

Nigeria has one of the highest rates of out-of-school children in the world, and girls are disproportionately affected by this problem. According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), 10.5 million children in Nigeria are out of school, and 60% of these children are girls 1.

In this episode, Judith Gbagidi - the Head of Programs for Education as a Vaccine; an organization that works in partnership with children, adolescents and young people to advance their rights to health, Gender Equality and protection from all forms of violence by strengthening capacities, providing direct services and influencing policies, for improved quality of life - converses with the host,  Halima Buba, on how social norms affect girls' access to education.

For updates, follow the Nigeria Learning Collaborative for Social Norms on the following social media platforms:

⁠Twitter⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠ ⁠YouTube⁠

For enquiries and collaboration, email us at info@nigerialearningcollaborative.com.

The availability of economic opportunities, information, and technology for women and girls is influenced by social norms. The majority of gender norms restrict this access, resulting in conditions that are constrictive and occasionally violent for women. In this episode, Dr Aisha Ismail, a gender and social inclusion expert, and Itoro Ata, a management consultant, discuss with the host, Emitomo Tobi Nimisire, how to consciously shift social norms that hinder women's advancement and promote women's economic empowerment.

Dr Aisha spoke about this research in this episode:

Policies and social norms: their relationship to women's economic empowerment in Nigeria

For updates, follow the Nigeria Learning Collaborative for Social Norms on the following social media platforms:

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For enquiries and collaboration, email us at info@nigerialearningcollaborative.com.

Despite increasing recognition of the importance of diversity and inclusion, women entrepreneurs continue to face significant challenges rooted in societal norms and biases. Listen as Yemisi Isidi, the co-founder of Triift Africa, explores deeply ingrained norms that often erode confidence, limit decision-making autonomy, and curtail opportunities for women within the entrepreneurial landscape.

In the latest episode of our Norms Lab Podcast, we had the pleasure of hosting Lois Aderomose and Emilia Okon. Our conversation shone the spotlight on the persistent and pressing issue of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and Social norms in Nigeria, examining the various faces it wears and the silent accomplice it often finds in prevailing social norms. 

Our discussion ventured into the territory of solutions - exploring innovative, norm-shifting approaches that have the potential to build safe havens for women, enabling them to break their silence.

thoughts

The rapid growth of digital platforms—ranging from social media giants like Facebook and Instagram to niche communities on Reddit and WhatsApp—has fundamentally changed how we communicate, form relationships, and establish social norms. Unlike traditional social settings, where norms are often rooted in long-standing cultural and societal practices, digital communities offer a dynamic and fluid environment where norms can be created, challenged, and reshaped at an unprecedented pace.

In this episode, Nsidibe-Abasi Joy Una, the Chief of Staff and Special Initiatives Lead at Gatefield, shared valuable insights into how digital communities are shaping contemporary social standards and offer strategies for leveraging digital platforms to promote positive change.

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In this thought-provoking episode of Normslab, we discussed the transformative power of advancing women's agency in shifting negative social and gender norms. Our guest Dr. Plangsat Dayil, the Gender Advisor of the development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC), shares her personal journeys and experiences, offering valuable insights into the obstacles women face in societies entrenched with harmful norms. Through compelling anecdotes and research-backed discussions, we explore the ways in which women are reclaiming their narratives and dismantling stereotypes that have persistently limited their potential.

The global prevalence estimates of child labour have reported an increase, for the first time in two decades (ILO, 2021, p.9). According to the ILO and NBS, 39.2% of children engaged in child labour in Nigeria. Among the antecedents of child labour, including poverty, parental history of child labour, immigration status, and educational status, recent research evidence from several countries identifies social and cultural norms as one of the key causes of child labour. Social norms regulate people's actions within the social order and characterize shared expectations among people.

Osoba Olukemi Olapeju, an experienced professional, shared insights on approaches to address the social norms perpetuating child labour by bridging the knowledge gap and empowering listeners to challenge social norms that perpetuate child labour.

In this latest episode of Normslab Dr. John Ovuoraye, the Director of Gender Adolescent School Health and Elderly (GASHE) Division, Family Health Department, Federal Ministry of Health, and Akinola Akinwumi, a Senior Research Specialist and the Insights Lead for the behavioral innovation lab at the Policy Innovation Centre led the discussions on the various gender mainstreaming policies affecting social norms and the agency of the people to act. Listen to the full episode for great insights from these industry experts.

In Nigeria, men outnumber women in positions of leadership; this worsens the gender gap and excludes women from significant decision-making processes. In this episode, the director of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), Ayisha Osori, talks with the host, Emitomo Tobi Nimisire, about social norms that underlie the inequities that women experience as a result of their underrepresentation in fields that require their opinions, skills, and actions. She also offers advice based on her vast experience.

For updates, follow the Nigeria Learning Collaborative for Social Norms on the following social media platforms:

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For enquiries and collaboration, email us at info@nigerialearningcollaborative.com.

The mental health challenges faced by women are unique and varied across different stages of life. From adolescence to menopause, women may face a range of stressors and pressures that can impact their mental well-being, including societal expectations, gender-based discrimination, hormonal changes, and caregiving responsibilities.  These challenges are often worsened by stigma and lack of access to resources. Addressing women's mental health needs is crucial to breaking the cycle of mental health challenges. 

In this episode, Ibifubara Davies , a Psychologist and Researcher who through her work in her private psychotherapy practice and other mediums, has provided support and resources to people dealing with mental health issues and Joy Ubong , an Advocacy and Research Officer in She Writes Woman (SWW), where she is currently giving her quota to seeing a stigmatized-free society, discuss with the host, Halima Buba, how social norms affect women's mental health.

For updates, follow the Nigeria Learning Collaborative for Social Norms on the following social media platforms:

⁠Twitter⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠ ⁠YouTube⁠

For enquiries and collaboration, email us at info@nigerialearningcollaborative.com.

The introduction of the HPV vaccine in Nigeria represents a monumental stride towards safeguarding our girls from the grips of cervical cancer.

However, the uptake of HPV vaccination faces unique challenges, particularly when viewed through the lens of gender norms.

Join us as Dr. Hannatu Ayuba, an experienced medical professional, explores the complexities surrounding HPV, its impact, and the gender-specific barriers that impede its effective vaccination in Nigeria.

The life expectancy at birth and universal health coverage service coverage index are typically much lower in low and middle-income (LMIC) countries than in higher-income countries. In this episode, Sushmita Mukherjee, Director of Gender at Project Concern International India, and Dr Habib Tijjani, Programme Manager of the Routine Immunisation Programme in Kano State, Nigeria, discuss with the host, Emitomo Tobi Nimisire, social norms that influence the demand and supply of healthcare services and products in their respective countries.

For updates, follow the Nigeria Learning Collaborative for Social Norms on the following social media platforms:

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For enquiries and collaboration, email us at info@nigerialearningcollaborative.com.

Discover how the 2024 Social Norms Conference transcends traditional research, driving actionable solutions for today’s critical issues—from women’s agency and climate resilience to family dynamics and digital innovation. Whether you’re a social innovator, change-maker, or simply passionate about building a better future, tune in to learn why this conference is essential for anyone invested in social transformation—and why you won’t want to miss it!