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Nigerian Women, Memories of the Past and Visions of the Future through the Communication Narratives of the Media

Abstract

Nigerian women have come a long way from the precolonial, to the colonial era to the contemporary era. There are great stories that seem not to have been told about Nigerian women. The inability to adequately capture the stories may have been due to inefficient communication and documentation. These stories bring out the essence these of women not only in nation building but as custodians of great legacy in a country with rich cultures and potential. In spite of the great role that women play in this clime, it seems that little or no effort is made to portray, promote and document their role. This paper seeks to look into the narratives surrounding Nigerian women in their journey towards political, social and economic empowerment and the influence of media and communication in aiding women to achieve empowerment in all spheres of their lives, through great memories and projected visions of possible futures. The media are a powerful tool that can be used to assist Nigerian women in asserting their voices so that their stories can be told and documented in an emulative manner. Communication according to scholars like Lasswell, Macquail and Wright informs educates and mobilizes, sensitizes and informs; therefore theories of communication and how they can be used to better the lives of Nigerian women are examined in this paper. The focus here is the use of the media especially radio which is the most widely used medium of women in Nigeria, especially women at the grassroots, to effect communication and change. A review of relevant literature, discussion and recommendations will be made in this paper.

Nefi Ainesi Wole-Abu

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