In pursuit of comprehensive sustainable development, we pledge to formulate cohesive strategies to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls, rooted in the principles of the 2030 Agenda.

Promote and Protect Human Rights: Ensure the protection and promotion of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of women and girls, fostering their full participation in societal affairs.

Mainstreaming Women’s Empowerment: Mainstream women’s economic, social, and political empowerment into all policies and programs to address gender disparities and promote inclusive development.

Human Rights-Centred Development: Ensure the promotion, protection and full realization of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights in poverty alleviation and institutional strengthening efforts with a gender perspective.

Recognizing the interdependence of multiple factors affecting gender equality, we prioritize the following action areas for policy development, planning, and implementation:

1. Human rights across all dimensions: Upholding human rights in all aspects means ensuring equal rights and opportunities for women and girls, including economic, social, cultural, civil, and political rights. This involves eliminating discrimination and violence based on gender, promoting freedom of expression and association, and protecting the rights of marginalized groups.
2. Universal Health Coverage (UHC): Implementing UHC ensures that all individuals, including women and girls, have access to essential health services without financial hardship. This includes reproductive health services, maternal and child health care, mental health support, and treatment for non-communicable diseases.
3. Decent work and inclusive labor laws: Creating decent work opportunities for women involves enacting inclusive labor laws that prohibit discrimination based on gender, ensuring equal pay for equal work, providing maternity and parental leave, and addressing informal work arrangements to promote fair and safe working conditions.
4. Peace and Security: Peace and security initiatives should prioritize the protection of women and girls from violence, conflict, and insecurity. This includes promoting women’s participation in conflict prevention, peacebuilding processes, and ensuring access to justice for survivors of gender-based violence.
5. Safe Migration: Developing safe migration frameworks protects women and girls from exploitation, trafficking, and abuse during migration. This involves providing legal pathways for migration, combating human trafficking, and ensuring migrants’ rights are respected regardless of gender.
6. Climate Change mitigation and adaptation: Addressing climate change through gender-responsive strategies recognizes women’s roles as both disproportionately affected by climate impacts and as agents of change in environmental sustainability efforts. This includes promoting women’s leadership in climate action and integrating gender considerations into adaptation and resilience-building initiatives.
7. Biodiversity preservation: Preserving biodiversity involves recognizing and supporting women’s contributions as custodians of biodiversity and traditional ecological knowledge. This includes empowering women in conservation efforts, sustainable agriculture, and natural resource management.
8. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: Promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion requires dismantling barriers that marginalize women based on ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, or other identities. This involves promoting representation and participation of diverse women in decision-making processes and ensuring equal access to resources and opportunities.
9. Community-level interventions for Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV): Strengthening community-level interventions against SGBV involves raising awareness, providing support services for survivors, and engaging men and boys in challenging harmful gender norms that perpetuate violence.
10. Multidimensional Poverty: Addressing multidimensional poverty requires addressing the intersecting factors that contribute to poverty among women, such as limited access to education, healthcare, and economic opportunities. This involves implementing targeted interventions that empower women economically and socially.
11. Education and Lifelong Learning: Ensuring access to quality education and lifelong learning opportunities empowers women and girls to reach their full potential. This includes promoting girls’ education, skills development, and adult literacy programs tailored to women’s needs.
12. Vocational and Technical Education: Providing vocational and technical education equips women with marketable skills and enhances their employment prospects in non-traditional sectors, promoting economic independence and empowerment.
13. Financial and Digital Literacy: Promoting financial and digital literacy empowers women to make informed decisions about their finances and leverage technology for economic and social advancement.
14. Disability Inclusion: Ensuring disability inclusion involves removing barriers to access and participation for women with disabilities, including providing accessible infrastructure, services, and opportunities for skill development and employment.
15. Access to Justice: Enhancing access to justice means addressing legal and institutional barriers that prevent women from seeking recourse for gender-based violence, discrimination, and other injustices.
16. Mental Health Protection: Prioritizing mental health protection includes promoting mental well-being and providing support services for women experiencing mental health challenges.
17. Maternal and Infant Health: Improving maternal and infant health involves ensuring access to quality reproductive health services, prenatal and postnatal care, and addressing maternal mortality and morbidity rates.
18. Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights: Upholding sexual and reproductive health and rights ensures access to comprehensive sexual education, family planning services, and safe abortion care, empowering women to make informed choices about their bodies and health.
19. Water Access, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH): Improving access to clean water, sanitation facilities, and hygiene education promotes women’s health and well-being, particularly in rural and underserved communities.
20. Menstrual Hygiene Management: Promoting menstrual hygiene management includes ensuring access to affordable and environmentally sustainable menstrual products and facilities, as well as addressing menstrual taboos and stigma.
21. Elimination of Child Labor: Eliminating child labor involves enforcing laws and policies that protect children, especially girls, from exploitation and ensuring access to education and social support.
22. Prevention of Early and Forced Marriage: Preventing early and forced marriage involves raising awareness, strengthening legal protections, and providing support services for at-risk girls to delay marriage and pursue education and personal development.
23. Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM): Ending FGM requires community engagement, education, and advocacy to challenge harmful practices and ensure the health and well-being of girls and women.
24. Reducing the burden of unpaid care and domestic work: Redistributing and recognizing unpaid care and domestic work as essential labor involves promoting shared responsibilities within households and implementing supportive policies such as affordable childcare and parental leave.
25. Countering harmful gender stereotypes and norms: Countering harmful gender stereotypes involves challenging societal expectations and promoting positive representations of women’s capabilities and roles in diverse settings.
26. Leadership training and opportunities: Providing leadership training and opportunities empowers women to take on decision-making roles in political, economic, and social spheres, fostering inclusive governance and representation.
27. Enterprise development support: Supporting women’s entrepreneurship and enterprise development involves providing access to finance, markets, and capacity-building programs to promote economic independence and empowerment.
28. Skills and career development training: Investing in skills and career development training equips women with the competencies needed to access and thrive in diverse fields of employment.
29. Sustainable Infrastructure development: Promoting sustainable infrastructure development includes integrating gender considerations into urban planning, transportation, and energy initiatives to ensure equitable access and environmental sustainability.
30. Enhancing Social Protection Policies: Enhancing social protection policies involves expanding coverage and benefits to address gender-specific vulnerabilities, including maternity protection, childcare support, and disability benefits.
31. Accessible, Affordable, and Quality Social Services provision (including care services, childcare, maternity, and paternity leave): Ensuring access to accessible, affordable, and quality social services such as healthcare, childcare, and maternity/paternity leave promotes family well-being and work-life balance for women.
32. Civil Society and Media Advocacy strengthening: Strengthening civil society and media advocacy amplifies women’s voices, advocates for policy change, and holds institutions accountable for gender equality commitments.
33. Engaging Men and Boys in promoting gender equality: Engaging men and boys in promoting gender equality involves challenging traditional stereotypes and promoting positive masculinity based on respect and equality. This includes integrating gender equality education and involving men in efforts to prevent gender-based violence. By fostering a culture where men actively support and advocate for gender equality, we can advance inclusive societal norms and promote positive change. Supporting male advocacy groups and promoting workplace diversity are also essential strategies in this effort.
34. Gender Rights Education: Gender rights education promotes awareness and action for gender equality by teaching principles of respect, empathy, and intersectionality. It empowers individuals to advocate for change, integrates gender perspectives in education, and engages communities in advancing policy reforms for inclusive societies that uphold human rights.
35. Intersectionality and Multidimensional Inequalities: Addressing intersectionality recognizes that women’s experiences of inequality are shaped by multiple factors such as ethnicity, class, and disability. Policies and programs must be designed to address these intersecting inequalities and ensure inclusivity and fairness for all women.
36. Bridging the Gender-Poverty Gap: Bridging the gender-poverty gap requires targeted interventions that address the root causes of poverty among women, including lack of access to education, employment, and resources. This involves implementing economic empowerment programs, social protection measures, and financial inclusion strategies.
37. Resource Mobilization, Innovative Financing, and Sustainable Financing: Resource mobilization involves leveraging diverse funding sources and innovative financing mechanisms to support gender equality initiatives. This includes advocating for increased investment in women’s empowerment and ensuring that resources are allocated efficiently and sustainably.
38. Pro-poor, Inclusive, and Gender-Responsive Policy formulation: Pro-poor, inclusive, and gender-responsive policy formulation entails designing policies that prioritize the needs and rights of marginalized and vulnerable populations, including women living in poverty. It involves engaging stakeholders, conducting gender analysis, and ensuring policy coherence across sectors.
39. Promoting Women in Political Leadership: Promoting women in political leadership involves removing barriers to women’s political participation and representation, such as discriminatory laws and practices. This includes implementing affirmative action measures, providing leadership training, and fostering a supportive environment for women leaders.
40. Strengthening National Mechanisms for Gender Equality: Strengthening national mechanisms for gender equality entails enhancing the capacity and effectiveness of government institutions responsible for gender mainstreaming and implementation of gender policies. This involves promoting coordination, monitoring progress, and allocating adequate resources to these mechanisms.
41. Fostering Sustainable Partnerships and Cooperation: Promoting sustainable partnerships and cooperation involves building alliances between governments, civil society, private sector, and international organizations to advance gender equality goals. This includes promoting collaboration, sharing best practices, and mobilizing collective action to address systemic barriers to women’s empowerment.

Foster cross-sector collaboration to:

1. Embed a gender perspective in financing for development commitments.

Embedding a gender perspective in financing for development commitments involves ensuring that financial resources are allocated in a way that specifically addresses the needs and priorities of women and girls. This requires:

Policy Integration: Policy frameworks should explicitly incorporate gender considerations into budget allocations and development plans. This means identifying and funding programs that directly benefit women and girls, such as education, healthcare, and economic empowerment initiatives.

Targeted Funding: Governments and international organizations should earmark specific funds for gender-focused projects and initiatives. This could involve setting aside a percentage of development budgets specifically for programs aimed at improving women’s economic opportunities, health outcomes, and access to resources.

Capacity Building: Institutions responsible for managing development funds should be trained to effectively integrate gender analysis into financial planning. This includes understanding how gender dynamics affect resource distribution and ensuring that funding decisions are equitable.

2. Expand fiscal space to prioritize investments aimed at eradicating poverty among women and girls.

Expanding fiscal space refers to creating room within government budgets to allocate more resources towards poverty eradication for women and girls. This can be achieved through:

Progressive Taxation: Implementing fair and progressive tax policies that generate sufficient revenue to fund social programs benefiting women and girls from marginalized communities.

Efficient Resource Allocation: Identifying and redirecting resources from non-essential expenditures towards poverty-alleviation programs targeting women and girls.

Innovative Resource Mobilization Mechanisms: Implementing innovative resource mobilization mechanisms involves exploring new and creative ways to secure funding specifically directed towards poverty eradication initiatives for women and girls. Mobilizing sustainable finance partnerships to supplement budgetary allocation for poverty eradication efforts, with a focus on gender-inclusive development.

Public-Private Partnerships: Collaborating with private sector entities to leverage resources and expertise in addressing gender disparities in poverty.

3. Implement gender-responsive economic and social policies while strengthening public institutions.

Implementing gender-responsive policies involves tailoring economic and social programs to address the specific needs and challenges faced by women and girls. This requires:

Policy Analysis: Conducting gender impact assessments to understand how different policies affect women and girls differently and adjusting them accordingly.

Capacity Development: Strengthening public institutions to integrate gender perspectives into their governance structures, policymaking processes, and service delivery.

Legal Reforms: Enacting laws that promote gender equality in economic opportunities, social protection, and access to resources.

Awareness and Advocacy: Promoting awareness among policymakers and the public about the importance of gender-responsive policies and their potential impact on sustainable development.

4. Engage and financially support women’s organizations and collectives in development initiatives.

Engaging and financially supporting women’s organizations and collectives is essential for advancing gender equality and empowering women to participate in development initiatives. Here’s why this is crucial and how it can be effectively implemented:

Capacity Building: Investing in the organizational capacity of women-led and women-focused organizations to enhance their ability to design, implement, and monitor development projects. This includes providing training, technical assistance, and networking opportunities.

Direct Funding: Allocating dedicated financial resources to women’s organizations and collectives to enable them to carry out impactful programs and advocacy efforts. This funding should be flexible and long-term to support sustained impact.

Partnerships and Collaboration: Facilitating partnerships between women’s organizations, governments, donors, and civil society to leverage resources, share knowledge, and amplify collective impact.

Policy Advocacy: Supporting women’s organizations in their advocacy efforts to influence policies and regulations that promote gender equality and women’s rights at local, national, and international levels.

Recognition and Representation: Ensuring meaningful participation of women’s organizations in decision-making processes related to development planning and policy formulation, recognizing their expertise and contributions.

5. Enhance data and statistical capacity to comprehensively address multidimensional poverty.

Enhancing data and statistical capacity is fundamental for understanding and addressing multidimensional poverty with a gender lens. Here are key actions to achieve this:

Gender-Disaggregated Data Collection: Prioritizing the collection, analysis, and dissemination of sex-disaggregated data to capture disparities in poverty rates, access to resources, and social outcomes between women and men.

Multidimensional Poverty Indices: Developing and utilizing multidimensional poverty indices that incorporate various dimensions of poverty (e.g., education, health, employment) to provide a comprehensive understanding of poverty’s complexity and impact on women and girls.

Capacity Building: Investing in training and resources for national statistical offices and researchers to improve their capacity to collect, analyze, and interpret gender-sensitive data related to poverty.

Policy Relevance: Ensuring that data collected informs policy and program design, enabling targeted interventions to address specific challenges faced by women and girls in poverty.

Monitoring and Evaluation: Establishing robust monitoring and evaluation frameworks to track progress in reducing gender gaps in poverty and to assess the effectiveness of interventions over time.

6. Foster innovative development strategies promoting sustainable economies and societies.

Fostering innovative development strategies involves adopting approaches that promote economic growth and social progress while prioritizing sustainability and gender equality. Here’s how this can be advanced:

Green Economy Initiatives: Investing in renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, and environmentally friendly industries that create opportunities for women’s economic empowerment while mitigating climate change and environmental degradation.

Technology and Digital Inclusion: Leveraging digital technologies to expand access to finance, education, and markets for women entrepreneurs and workers, bridging digital divides and promoting economic inclusion.

Social Protection Programs: Designing and implementing social safety nets that specifically target women and vulnerable populations, providing them with access to essential services, resources, and support during economic shocks or crises.

Gender-Responsive Infrastructure Development: Ensuring that infrastructure projects (e.g., transportation, water, sanitation) consider and address the specific needs of women and girls, enhancing their mobility, safety, and access to opportunities.

Inclusive Policy Frameworks: Developing policies and regulations that promote gender equality in employment, entrepreneurship, land ownership, and decision-making, fostering inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

In affirming the NCLUDEHer Nigeria Accord, we commit to taking transformative actions that drive gender equality and women’s empowerment in Nigeria, building on international frameworks and mobilizing resources for sustained progress. We stand unified, in our commitment to implement actionable measures that dismantle barriers and create opportunities for every woman and girl.

This Accord stands as a testament to our collective resolve to create a future where every woman and girl in Nigeria can realize her full potential, free from poverty, discrimination, and institutional barriers. Together, we will strive for lasting change, ensuring that every woman and girl in Nigeria can contribute meaningfully to a more just and inclusive society. Through sustained dedication and collaboration, we envision a Nigeria where gender equality is not just an aspiration, but a lived reality for all.