Mainstreaming Gender in Adult Education Programmes: Experiences from South South Nigeria

This study examines how gender mainstreaming principles are applied in adult education programmes in South South Nigeria, assessing policy commitments, programme design practices, and gender equality outcomes. Gender mainstreaming in adult education involves ensuring that programme design, content, delivery, and monitoring systematically address the different needs and participation barriers of women and men. Despite national and international commitments to gender-responsive adult education, implementation in South South Nigeria's diverse communities has been uneven. This study uses a document analysis and survey design, reviewing gender mainstreaming policies and programme documents from adult education organisations in Rivers, Delta, and Akwa Ibom States, supplemented by a survey of 75 programme managers and facilitators. Gender responsiveness is assessed across five dimensions: needs assessment, content, facilitation methods, monitoring and evaluation, and feedback mechanisms. Descriptive statistics and regression analysis are applied. Findings reveal that gender needs assessments are rarely conducted, and programme content insufficiently reflects women's livelihood realities in fishing and farming communities. Female facilitator recruitment is lower than recommended despite evidence linking female facilitators to higher female enrolment. Gender-disaggregated monitoring data are absent in most programmes reviewed. The study concludes that gender mainstreaming in South South Nigerian adult education remains largely rhetorical rather than operational. It recommends mandatory gender assessments as a precondition of programme funding and gender-responsive indicator frameworks for all UBEC-supported programmes.

Keywords: gender mainstreaming, adult education, South South Nigeria, gender equality, programme design.