Niger - Gender Equity Reinforcement Projec

The present intervention concerns the Gender Equity Reinforcement Project. It's conceived in a context marked by imbalances to the detriment of women in areas such as education, health, access to resources, social rights, participation, or decision-making. The literacy rate was 10.6% for women compared with 30.4% for men. Although the Nigerian Constitution enshrines the principle of equality, the coexistence of three legal sources (customary law, modern law and religious law) made the situation of women difficult. Finally, women were almost absent from decision-making circles. To correct these imbalances, the Government developed a Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS), which focused on the promotion and development of human resources, particularly women. The Government has also adopted a law on quotas aiming at a target of at least 20% of women in elective offices, 20% in the Government and 25% in public administration. The project is an important contribution to the Government's PRS in promoting gender in Niger, notably its contribution to significant changes in people's behavior and the strengthening of equity. The expected impact of the project was the reduction of gender disparities in the areas of law, education and access to ICTs. The project has three components namely: (i) capacity building, (ii) Improvement of the Legal Framework and Women’s Access to Information and Communication, and (iii) Project Management.