Ruth Olurounbi

Ruth Olurounbi erstwhile Business Editor, at Per Second News currently works as Media and Communication Manager with YIAGA AFRICA. In that capacity, she was able to influence the inclusion of a discourse on gender mainstreaming in training organised by YIAGA AFRICA for forty journalists. She also strengthened the resolve of young journalists pursuing a sustainable career in the media. As such, she trained a blogger and a youth corps member on gender balance reporting, to beef up the representation of women in the media. The major highpoint for Ruth on the project was seeing male journalists’ commitment to eradicating sexism, and their commitment to improving the percentage of female representation in the media. Ruth has plans underway to start a training programme that would help women become very good sources for media professionals, particularly in the way they answer questions.

Ruth in her story “Nigeria Restrictive Laws and Women’s Sexual Reproductive Rights” highlights women’s sexual reproductive health rights and the Nigerian laws that restrict them from accessing their basic human rights. Through interviews with young and middle-aged women, mostly from the northern part of the country, Ruth brings to bear the challenges of these helpless women who become brides and mothers by coercion. The story sought a redress as it were to the issues of women’s right within the ambits of sexual and reproductive rights. According to the story, the law, culture and religion have conspired to restrict women’s rights in a severely patriarchal Nigeria, and the impact this has on millions of girls and women is that it hinders their growth and productivity.