Rise of Single Parenthood in Nigeria and Societal Challenges
The institution of family is experiencing a dynamic change in Nigeria. After being established in the traditional nuclear family setting, single-parent families have become a major component of the modern-day family. The emergence of single parenthood is not a phenomenon exclusive to Nigeria, and the statistics around the whole world indicate the same tendency, yet the country has a specific socio-economic and cultural environment that makes this shift especially dramatic.
With the institution of marriage coming under fire in both the urban and rural regions, single-person families in Nigeria have continued to grow. A recent report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), revealed that approximately one quarter of families in the country today are single parent families-a startling fact that can be translated to the greater changes in the dynamics of families in the country.
Among the major causes of this phenomenon, one can single out the dissolution of traditional marriages. Marriage is no longer a lifetime bond for many couples in Nigeria. According to Dr. Igbayike Oloyede, a sociologist of the University of Lagos, divorce and separation have become more prevalent and hence there is an increasing number of households where one parent takes charge of rearing the children alone.
In conjunction with this, the fact that women are gaining greater financial autonomy has played a central role in altering the family structure. Previously, women were also financially reliant on their spouses. Nowadays, though, women have a better chance to access education and are joining the labour force, thus being able to support themselves and their children independently without the financial support of their partner. This is how it happened to Mrs. Remilekun Olopade, a single-mother figure of two children in Osogbo who even after ten years of marriage was left financially stable following her divorce.
However, not all people consider this change to be positive. Mrs. Teresa Olanike as a commentator on family set-ups points out the possible implications of increasing single parenthood. According to her, children who observe the problems of their parents in marriage might not have the urge to want to get married in the future. This trauma of the generations might cause the reduced rates of marriages, which would keep increasing the chain of single parenting.
Further, Olanike highlights that, single-parent families can be very emotional for children. She contends that these kids can encounter various issues, including behavioural difficulties and lower academic performance. Her tips to struggling couples in marriage are quite easy yet very deep: instead of taking the divorce option, the couples should do all they can to solve any differences in their marital life.
But according to Mr. Bassey Emmanuel who is a social commentator, an increase in single parenting is an indication of larger changes in society. Although in the past, single parents were shunned and stigmatised especially in rural areas, there is an increased level of acceptance and tolerance towards single parents in urban areas. The stigma is becoming weaker, yet there are still major problems.
The financial costs, emotional cost as well as social stigmas that accompany single parenthood are daunting yet Mr. Sunday Idowu who is a father of four is of the view that there is also the opportunity of personal growth and empowerment that accompany the change. He notes that it is necessary to make the society more accepting and supportive of single parents and proposes the implementation of government intervention in the shape of more robust child support laws and social welfare schemes.
The necessity of the change in the attitude of society is acute. Idowu argues that the trend of single-parent households may be curbed in the near future by strengthening child support legislation, providing relationship education courses, and community programmes that would help raise healthy marriages. According to him, such measures may eventually guarantee a more stable environment for children and families.
To Chris Tull whose two daughters are of age to be divorced, single parenting is a voyage of unknown seas. Tull remembers how he was shocked when he realised that he was a single parent in his fifties, and had no one to turn to, to hold him. His experience brings out the logistical and emotional issues that lone parents go through especially when handling children of the opposite sex.
Tull in his stories creates a window into the personalities of single dads, highlighting the issues of managing such circumstances as school visits and sleepovers when the mother is absent, leaving the fathers feeling isolated and unprepared. Although single mothers are going through the same struggles, Tull has a unique insight and presents a candid view regarding the experiences that single fathers have to go through.
As Nigeria struggles to perceive the increasing rates of single-parent families, it is apparent that the changes in the family setup are not a fad at all but a momentous movement that needs both society and the government to act. The opportunities of empowerment, growth, and support are as many as the challenges are.
The family life in Nigeria is likely to have a very different future as compared to the past, yet, with the right policies and cultural mindsets, the single parents can become their support instead of their stigma.
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