In worship of the Mother Goddess; Yemoja Festival 2021

Yemoja is the Yoruba Orisha or Goddess of the living Ocean, considered the Mother of All. She is the source of all the waters, including the rivers of Western Africa, especially the River Ogun. Her name, Yemoja, means “Mother Whose Children are the Fish.” YEMOJA FESTIVAL is a 17-day annual celebration that showcases Yorùbá religion... Read More

Culture, Non-binary Blog

October 6, 2021

Paternity leave is a new reality in Nigeria | Here are the benefits if done right

After years of clamour by advocates for Nigeria to avail new fathers of paid paternity leave, it appears some headway has been made. The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday, September 29, 2021, approved two weeks of paid paternity leave after it reviewed its Public Service Rules (PSR,) for the first time since 2008. It... Read More

Culture, Non-binary Blog

childcare, Paternity leave, post natal depression, postpartum depression

October 5, 2021

#ADHDAwarenessMonth | What you need to know

ADHD Awareness Month is celebrated every October, with events and activities happening around the world, yet for one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in the world Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder remains little understood especially in Nigeria. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder affecting both children and adults around the globe, and... Read More

Culture, Non-binary Blog

ADHD, ADHD Awareness, nigeria

September 27, 2021

Religious conversion is all fun and games unless you are a woman

For a majority of religious people, life’s ultimate goal is the reward they are promised in an afterlife. Heaven, Paradise, Nirvana are the rewards for good behaviour if you have been Christian, Muslim, or Buddhist in life. Unless you are a woman. This is not about inequality in heavenly reward – even though that too... Read More

Culture, Non-binary Blog

apostasy, gender inequality, Religion, Religious conversion, Religious violence

September 23, 2021

Down The Memory Lane: A journey of acceptance

I The first time I thought queer lives matter, I am standing at the boarding students’ dining hall with some friends, loitering around the environment. I am wearing baggy school trousers, after a serious extra lesson class in preparation for our West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination. The sun is brimming to its fullest.... Read More

Culture, More, Non-binary Blog

Homophobia, LGBT+, LGBTQ Nigerians

September 23, 2021

#BisexualPrideDay: The dummies guide to understanding that biphobia is not human

In a country where pride in anything outside of the straight and narrow is heavily frowned upon, and bisexuality is reduced to either an excuse for infidelity or a cover for homosexuality, Bisexual Pride Day is a hard nut to crack. Bisexual Pride Day is observed annually on September 23 to recognise and celebrate the... Read More

Culture, Non-binary Blog

Bisexual Pride Day, bisexuality, LGBT+, Sexism

September 10, 2021

#WorldSuicidePreventionDay: Attempted suicide is still a crime in Nigeria when our hope lies in its decriminalisation

‘Suicide is not an option.’ Reads a very colourful sign at the entrances of a Non-Governmental Organisation in Kaduna, whose purported aim is suicide prevention and mental health intervention. The colours invite hope, the message incites confusion particularly for the survivor walking through that door hoping to find a reason to not choose again an... Read More

Culture, Non-binary Blog

nigeria, suicide, Suicide Ranking, WHO, World Suicide Prevention Day

September 1, 2021

Surprise! Nigerian teenagers are actual human beings with feelings

In a perfect world, the realisation – for that’s what it, not a discovery – that teenagers grapple with a lot of emotional upheaval in their lives won’t come as a surprise. They are after all human, their experience barring early death forms part of the human collective experience we love to explore in books,... Read More

Culture

anxiety, depression and anxiety, gender, Teens And Anxiety

August 27, 2021

Nigeria’s prevalence of violence can be linked to child beating. Here’s why

The culture in Nigeria with respect to corporal punishment – which is so commonplace you find it at home, in schools, in places of worship and ultimately wielded by the powers that be against law-abiding citizens – is evolving towards at the very least the understanding that this is a problem. Corporal punishment is a discipline... Read More

Culture

Child abuse in Nigeria, corporal punishment, gender-based violence, TV, UNICEF

August 25, 2021

This is how Churches and Mosques come in to change the narrative on mental illness stigma

There is a trend lately of Nigerians discussing mental health and lamenting the stigma attached to it – arguably due to the copious amount of public education by mental health organisations and other institutions of information and learning. People ponder – with affected heaviness of heart – how come the culture is so lacking in... Read More

Culture

Christians, mental health, Muslims, nigeria, Schizophrenia, stigma

August 25, 2021

African Spirituality winning over every other belief is the main appeal of ‘My Village People’

For most entertainment consumers – we know only of our Nigerian reality understandably, waking up to the news of a movie coming to the cinema, making the decision to walk into a cinema and purchase a ticket to watch it, remains a gamble. One can only trust a few variables – their favourite actors and... Read More

Culture, Non-binary Blog

disney, Genevieve Nnaji, My Village People, nollywood, Rachel Oniga, Sola Sobowale, Yemoja

August 24, 2021

“There are levels to intimacy” | A sex worker’s love story

There are two extremes of conversation that most discussions about sex work or prostitution (if you prefer that street term that is loaded with negativity) end up being in Nigeria’s cultural atmosphere. 1. The poor helpless woman who is forced to sell her body because she has no other alternative – never... Read More

Culture

Gigolo, sex work, sex workers, Sugar boy

August 23, 2021

Paternity leave is the next big thing | Here’s why it may not work with Nigerian men

The number of ways that enforced gender roles manifest in our everyday life – from the home to school, to places of worship and work – is too immense to measure. Yet perhaps because measuring is not the antidote to the harm enforced gender roles cause for all people – male, female, and every other... Read More

Culture

kwara, Labour Act, lagos, maternity leave, nigeria, North Central, Paternity leave, Yoruba

August 23, 2021

How to spot sexual grooming and protect children from sexual predators

The idea of sexual grooming – which is often a lead-up to sexual abuse – can sound a bit complicated in a culture like Nigeria where sex and sexuality are shrouded in so much hush hush mystery and wrapped in shame that Sex Education remains widely rejected by parents and guardians. Yet the consequence of... Read More

Culture

child molestation, sex education, Sexual assault, Sexual Grooming, sexual violence

August 21, 2021

Who is looking out for LGBT+ children in the conversation about sexual violence?

There are a number of ways the crime of sexual violence can begin unfolding in one’s life. It is not always a rude shock moment, like in the case of an acquaintance, who woke up one day to a beloved older nephew forcing himself on her in the very room next to her mother’s. It... Read More

Culture

gay rights, Grooming, human rights, LGBT+, rape, sexual violence

August 20, 2021

The likely reason for the rampant paedophilia in Nigeria unfolds in Twitter conversation about the age of consent

The flimsy endurance of the Twitter trend cycle of 24 – at most 48 – hours has only on extremely rare occasions respected the gravity of a topic of discussion. The widely publicised disappearance and subsequent discovery in death of the job seeker, Iniubong Umoren – rest her soul, who was a victim of sexual... Read More

Culture

child bride, child rape, Child Rights Act, Grooming, Sexual Offences Bill, sexual predation, sexual violence

August 18, 2021

“A hydra-headed problem calls for a hydra-headed solution” | Northern educator reveals solution to problem of education deprivation

Hardly any problem exists in this world for which one can say with unassailable certainty, “If you do this one thing, your problem will be fixed.” It is always a combination of things – taking a painkiller and a nap to heal headache for instance – that helps us arrive at some kind of resolution.... Read More

Blogs, Culture

education deprivation, girl child education, hausa, islam, Northern Nigeria

August 17, 2021

The anatomy of self-loathing: Understanding homophobia and internalised homophobia

Ask around about homophobia, “What does it mean and how does it best manifest?” If you chance upon a cis-heterosexual person who isn’t defensive – the way many a Nigerian cis-hetero person is wont to be and for the good reason that they are complicit in the criminalisation of queer humanity, they are likely to... Read More

Blogs, Culture

Homophobia, LGBT+, LGBTQ Nigerians, Sexual assault, violence, Violence against women

August 13, 2021

Kawajo: The immortal transwoman who changed Kano forever

It isn’t so bizarre – because the flow of energy goes whatever way it just does – that someone will say something that sets you off on a remembrance of something, someone, or someplace. I’ve been thinking about Kawajo – a transwoman publicly humiliated as a man in a dress in Kano in 2004, since... Read More

Culture, Non-binary Blog

kano, Kawajo, Shariah, Transgender

August 12, 2021

The French meddle: How the action of the French ambassador to Ghana encourages homophobic violence against LGBT+ Ghanaians

The ongoing spectacle of intolerance in the small West African country of Ghana is no longer news. Unless you are completely unplugged from the world you know at least the following two facts: 1. Politicians in Ghana, with the blessing and urging of religious groups and leaders, have created a bill whose... Read More

Culture

Anne Sophie Ave, Emmanuel Macron, France, KillTheBill, LGBT+, LGBTQ Ghanaians

January 22, 2021

How Beauty Boy, Eni Adeoluwa is redefining masculinity

The beauty industry in Nigeria is one that has thrived with females mostly being at the centre of it all. From top to bottom, women are projected as the essence of beauty for ‘personal’ and commercial purposes even in areas where men are concerned. If a man can be described as beautiful however, – as... Read More

Culture, Deep Dive, Editor's Pick

Beauty Boy, Enioluwa Adeoluwa

July 30, 2019

British-Nigerian actress Deborah Ayorinde to star in upcoming Amazon Studios horror series ”Them”

British-Nigerian actress Deborah Ayorinde is set to star in the upcoming anthology horror series Them: Covenant, the latest offering from Amazon Studios and helmed by Emmy-winning actor, producer and writer Lena Waithe. This is the first fruit of Waithe’s recent announcement about a new deal to create original content for Amazon Studios, and according to... Read More

Culture

Amazon Studios, Deborah Ayorinde, them

July 29, 2019

Check out the new movie poster for dramatic thriller ”Elevator Baby” starring Toyin Abraham and Timini Egbuson

Niyi Akinmolyayan is having a busy 2019. Already, the filmmaker has three upcoming projects including the animated movie Malika: Warrior Queen, and Elevator Baby adds onto the stack. The movie has been in development for a while, directed by Akay Mason and stars Timini Egbuson and Toyin Abraham. Elevator Baby tells the story of Dare... Read More

Culture, The Film Blog

Akay Mason, Elevator Baby, Niyi Akinmolayan, Timini Egbuson, Toyin Abraham

July 28, 2019

#BBNaija: Gedoni doesn’t love Khafi and it’s time for her to wake up and play this game

Although the fourth season of Big Brother Naija doesn’t have the pairing system that defined last season, the housemates have begun to couple with each other but it’s been nothing short of sketchy. That said, and to the eyes of viewers, Khafi and Gedoni are the pair of housemates whose relationship has taken on more... Read More

Culture

BBNaija, Big Brother Naija, Gedoni, Khadoni, Khafi

July 28, 2019

Theatre Review: Forget Game of Thrones, Jagagba is the real deal

The winning play of the second edition of the Bikiya Graham-Douglas run Beeta Universal Arts Foundation playwright competition was staged over the weekend at the Agip recital hall of the Muson centre in Lagos. Emerging from a pool of 348 entries, Jagagba, written by Abdul-Qudus Ibrahim is a timely deconstruction of patriarchal societies that points... Read More

Culture, Reviews, The Cutting Floor

‘JAGAGBA’, Bikiya Douglas, theatre

July 27, 2019

Three Nigerian authors make 2019 Booker Prize longlist, Buhari sends ministerial nominees to Senate, Air Peace aircraft crash lands at Lagos airport – Here’s everything that happened this week

Here are the stories that drove conversation this week: 12 reportedly killed in Shiites protest as IGP Adamu meets Buhari A Shiite protest that turned violent on Monday was the major issue of discussion at a meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu. At least 12 people, including a police officer, were... Read More

Culture, Featured, The News Blog

air peace, Booker Prize, Buhari, Buhari’s ministerial nominees, CJN, Shi'ites

July 26, 2019

Check out the books Asa is currently reading before her album drops

While we wait for Asa to release her much-anticipated album, for which we have already been blessed with two singles already, the singer tweeted the books she was reading at the moment: The Republic of Gupta by South African investigative journalist Pieter-Louis Myburgh, This Present Darkness by Stephen Ellis, Steinheist by Rob Rose, When Zuma... Read More

Culture

Asa, books

July 25, 2019

Three Nigerian authors Oyinkan Braithwaite, Bernardine Evaristo and Chigozie Obioma make 2019 Booker Prize longlist

Congratulations are in order to Oyinkan Braithwaite, Chigozie Obioma, and Bernardine Evaristo, three Nigerian authors who have made it to the 2019 Booker Prize longlist, which was announced yesterday. Braithwaite’s debut novel My Sisiter, the Serial Killer has received a lot of praise and acclaim in the literary world. An Orchestra of Minorities is Obioma’s... Read More

Culture

Bernardine Evaristo, Booker Prize 2019, Chigozie Obioma, Longlist, Oyinkan Braithwaite

July 24, 2019

#MTVShugaNaija is back with a new cast and here’s what we know

After an electric season of MTV Shuga: Down South, the show is back to Nigeria for season 4 and a new cast was unveiled on Tuesday at a press briefing, old characters reprising their roles like Tobi (Timini Egbuson) and Faa (Adebukola Oladipupo). However, one character that wasn’t introduced at the briefing is Jemima Osunde’s... Read More

Culture

daniel ademinokan, MTV Shuga cast reveal, MTV Shuga Naija, Tobi Bakare, Tolulope Ajayi, Tope Oshin

July 24, 2019

The trailer for animated movie ”Malika: Warrior Queen” is here and Adesuwa Etomi-Wellington as Malika is unstoppable!

The internet is abuzz with the trailer for hotly anticipated animated movie Malika: Warrior Queen, an adaptation of the graphic novel of the same name by Roye Okupe, the CEO of Niyi Akinmolayan who also directed the project. The animation has been gestating for a long time now, recruiting in-demand actress Adesua Etomi-Wellington to voice... Read More

Culture, The Film Blog

Adesuwa Etomi-Wellington, Blossom Chukwujekwu, Deyemi Okanlowon, femi branch, Malika: Warrior Queen, Niyi Akinmolayan, Roye Okupe, Sambassa Nzeribe

In worship of the Mother Goddess; Yemoja Festival 2021

Paternity leave is a new reality in Nigeria | Here are the benefits if done right

#ADHDAwarenessMonth | What you need to know

Religious conversion is all fun and games unless you are a woman

Down The Memory Lane: A journey of acceptance

#BisexualPrideDay: The dummies guide to understanding that biphobia is not human

#WorldSuicidePreventionDay: Attempted suicide is still a crime in Nigeria when our hope lies in its decriminalisation

Surprise! Nigerian teenagers are actual human beings with feelings

Nigeria’s prevalence of violence can be linked to child beating. Here’s why

This is how Churches and Mosques come in to change the narrative on mental illness stigma

African Spirituality winning over every other belief is the main appeal of ‘My Village People’

“There are levels to intimacy” | A sex worker’s love story

Paternity leave is the next big thing | Here’s why it may not work with Nigerian men

How to spot sexual grooming and protect children from sexual predators

Who is looking out for LGBT+ children in the conversation about sexual violence?

The likely reason for the rampant paedophilia in Nigeria unfolds in Twitter conversation about the age of consent

“A hydra-headed problem calls for a hydra-headed solution” | Northern educator reveals solution to problem of education deprivation

The anatomy of self-loathing: Understanding homophobia and internalised homophobia

Kawajo: The immortal transwoman who changed Kano forever

The French meddle: How the action of the French ambassador to Ghana encourages homophobic violence against LGBT+ Ghanaians

How Beauty Boy, Eni Adeoluwa is redefining masculinity

British-Nigerian actress Deborah Ayorinde to star in upcoming Amazon Studios horror series ”Them”

Check out the new movie poster for dramatic thriller ”Elevator Baby” starring Toyin Abraham and Timini Egbuson

#BBNaija: Gedoni doesn’t love Khafi and it’s time for her to wake up and play this game

Theatre Review: Forget Game of Thrones, Jagagba is the real deal

Three Nigerian authors make 2019 Booker Prize longlist, Buhari sends ministerial nominees to Senate, Air Peace aircraft crash lands at Lagos airport – Here’s everything that happened this week

Check out the books Asa is currently reading before her album drops

Three Nigerian authors Oyinkan Braithwaite, Bernardine Evaristo and Chigozie Obioma make 2019 Booker Prize longlist

#MTVShugaNaija is back with a new cast and here’s what we know

The trailer for animated movie ”Malika: Warrior Queen” is here and Adesuwa Etomi-Wellington as Malika is unstoppable!

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