Affirmative action is a policy or program that aims to provide equal opportunities for historically underrepresented or disadvantaged groups in areas such as employment, education, and business ownership.

It typically involves taking proactive measures to ensure that individuals from these groups have equal access to opportunities, often through the implementation of policies that promote diversity and inclusion.

The purpose of affirmative action is to address past and present discrimination and to promote inclusivity and diversity in society. While affirmative action policies have been debated and criticized for various reasons, they have also been supported as a way to address systemic inequalities and promote a more equitable society.

The Affirmative Action and Economic Advocacy for Women and Youths is an initiative of the Accord for Community Development designed to improve the living standards of women and youths through programs that support gender equality and social inclusion as well as socio-economic development.

In Nigeria, women and youths face multiple challenges ranging from gender discrimination, inadequate skills training, lack of access to finance, lack of participation and representation.

It is obviously known that Governments worldwide aim to protect, improve, and equalize the living conditions of citizens. However, they are faced with serious issues, such as gender discrimination. To reduce the problem, many have attempted to define and understand affirmative action from different perspectives based on their location. In Nigeria, the National Gender Policy (NGP) has formulated a 35% Affirmative Action (AA) since 2006. This policy demands that 35% of women be involved in all governance processes. The NGP is recognized but is not practiced as the structures and processes to use are not yet in place.

Program Goal

The program’s goal is to use affirmative action to address systemic disadvantages which women and girls face due to gender injustice and discrimination. It also seeks to strengthen youth groups for effective civic engagement and participation in democratization and governance.

Program Objectives

• Objective 1

To use affirmative action and the instruments of advocacy to address systemic discrimination and disadvantages which women face through carrying out activities which aim to end violent practices against women.

• Objective 2

To increase youth participation in democratic governance, through enhanced ability to organize and mobilize themselves for constructive engagement with institutions of governance and enable youth leadership.

• Objective 3

To enhance access to economic opportunities for women and youth through support to women in microenterprise, business linkages and vocational training for youth in order to increase their participation and contribution to economic development.

Program Location

The program is being carried out in twenty communities across 12 LGAs in four states of Nigeria. The States Include;

•  Rivers
• Imo
• Delta, and
• Lagos

Activities under this program include;

Affirmative Action Program

• Campaign for Stoppage of Violence Against Women and Social Inclusion for promoting Gender Justice Approaches: This entails advancing gender equality and equity through affirmative action and social inclusion for women across the target states.

Over 2,000 women have participated in our capacity enhancement training programs where their capacities have been built to speak out against violent practices, participate in the governance processes of their local constituencies, and carry out advocacy visits to relevant stakeholders on issues that directly concern and affect them.

• Stakeholder Engagement for Policy and Cultural Change: Haven identified that men are important stakeholders in the affirmative action program; we carry out stakeholder engagements for policy and cultural change. These engagements in the form of capacity building workshops are targeted at community leaders, men, women and youth. These engagements help the people to express themselves, while also committing to change some policies that negatively affect women (though this may take some time) and including them in the governance structures of their communities. We have reached over twenty communities with these engagements for policy and cultural change.
• Youth Capacity Building for Enhanced Participation and Civic Engagement: Capacity building training programs are carried out for youths on the need to become civically empowered to take part in the electoral processes of their constituencies.
• Strengthening of Women and Youth Groups: Women and youth groups have been strengthened to become active agents of change. We have also assisted some of these groups to be formal registered as cooperatives. We have registered over twenty cooperative groups with the appropriate bodies.
• Campaign against Drug Abuse and Social Vices: Our anti-drug abuse program is targeted at young persons in secondary schools, as well as out of school youth across the twenty target communities in the four target states of our affirmative action program. Our theme is; ‘Empowering Youths to Rise Above Drug Abuse’ This program has had positive impact on the lives of these young persons, with thousands of them saying NO to illicit use of drugs and other harmful substances.

Economic Empowerment Program

• Vocational Trainings for Youths: We carry out vocational trainings on different vocations for out of school youths in our target communities. These range from fashion and designing to welding, catering, etc
• Economic empowerment (Support for Women in Micro-enterprise): We give financial support to women who are economically active but lack the needed capital to start up or expand their businesses. This support is in the form of a revolving loan scheme, where beneficiaries are given small amounts to support their businesses to be repaid over a period of time for on-lending to another group of women. This monies revolves round these women until most of the women in the community has received the support.
• Business Linkage and Economic Empowerment Support: We build the capacities of entrepreneurs on effective business management for increased income generation. We also help link them to financial agencies for grants and micro loans.