The Centre for Gender Studies, Igbinedion University, Okada is established with the primary objective of advancing gender equity, promoting interdisciplinary gender-focused scholarship, and influencing institutional and societal change through research, advocacy, and policy engagement. The specific objectives of the Centre are as follows:
- To promote interdisciplinary academic research and scholarship on gender issues, fostering collaboration across faculties and disciplines to explore the social, economic,
- cultural, legal, and political dimensions of gender inequality and discrimination.
- To mainstream gender into university policies, programs, and practices, ensuring that all administrative, academic, and operational frameworks reflect a commitment to gender justice, inclusion, and equity.
- To serve as a central resource for gender education, training, and capacity building, offering sensitization workshops, certificate courses, faculty training, and student-led initiatives that cultivate gender-responsive leadership and institutional culture.
- To provide confidential support services and safe spaces for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, including psychosocial counselling, referral mechanisms, and institutional advocacy to ensure justice, dignity, and accountability.
- To conduct policy analysis and provide technical advisory services to the university and relevant stakeholders on gender-sensitive policies, campus safety, inclusive learning environments, and broader gender-related challenges within society.
- To strengthen community engagement and public advocacy efforts by designing and implementing outreach programs that raise awareness on gender rights, challenge harmful gender norms, and empower vulnerable and marginalized populations.
- To facilitate the economic and social empowerment of women and other vulnerable groups, by implementing development-focused initiatives such as financial literacy programs, entrepreneurship support, and skills acquisition training.
- To establish strategic partnerships with national and international bodies, academic institutions, donor agencies, and civil society organizations, in order to enhance research, programming, and resource mobilization efforts for gender-related work.
- To contribute to national and global efforts to achieve gender equality, particularly through the generation of data, publication of scholarly work, and alignment with international frameworks such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 5) and Nigeria’s National Gender Policy.
These objectives form the foundation upon which the Centre will design its programs, measure its impact, and pursue its long-term vision of fostering an equitable, inclusive, and socially just academic and societal environment.
