BY MARIE-THERESE NANLONG, JOS
Today, being International Women’s Day, the world is invited to embrace a simple yet transformative idea: Give To Gain.
The theme “Give to Gain,” calls for generosity, collaboration and shared progress. This is a powerful truth that when individuals, organisations and communities invest in women, opportunities expand, systems strengthen and societies thrive.
This concept of reciprocity, give to gain is not abstract, it is practical and measurable. In societies where justice is given to women, everyone gains.
It is a fact that when women flourish, they add immense value to families, communities and the broader social fabric.Conversely, where injustice is normalised, growth is stunted and harmony fractured.For generations, harmful practices have undermined women’s rights in many communities.
The denial of female inheritance, property seizure, rape, forced labour and forced marriage, among other injustices, have persisted, often shielded by culture and tradition.
These practices have not only silenced women; they have weakened communities by suppressing half their potential.But across parts of Plateau State, a shift is being witnessed.
In some communities within Jos North, Jos South, and Jos East, traditional institutions, long seen as custodians of custom, are redefining leadership by aligning tradition with justice.
Their message echoes the spirit of International Women’s Day 2026: when communities give justice to women, they gain stability, unity and progress.Rewriting Custom with By laws, the Nabor District’s Example In the Nabor District of Jos North Local Government Area, change from harmful cultural practices to justice for women and girls began with a by-law.
HRH Bala Haruna, the District Head of Nabor, speaks with the measured confidence of a leader who understands both tradition and reform.
His community, he explains, has enacted a by-law on gender-based violence (GBV) prevention after participating in a series of trainings facilitated by the International Federation of Women Lawyers, FIDA Nigeria.
“My community has a by law on GBV prevention, I was invited for series of training by FIDA Nigeria, and they taught us how to develop our own by laws.
“So, when we came from one of the trainings about two years ago, I sat down with my Council and developed our own by laws or rules and regulations in order to see how we can protect women and my community,” he said.Justice, for him, goes beyond rhetoric.
It is codified in community rules as he explained, “One of the things involved in the bylaw is the issue of inheritance by women or the girl child. Because of cultural norms, it was not usual for women or the girl child to inherit land or other properties, but we are changing that.
The District Head stated the reason for the exclusion of women and girls from inheritance could have been both economic and patriarchal because daughters would marry into other families, so investing in them, whether through education or property was considered wasteful.
Early and forced marriages were entrenched, as poverty drove families to marry off children before they could acquire education or skills.
Such thinking, he acknowledged, fuelled inequality, and injustice, but stated, “we have been able to correct that, using the by laws, inheritance of women too, we have worked on that so that if a woman loses her husband, she will not be forcefully asked to marry another person within that family as was done in the past.
“Reform, however, is most powerful when it begins at home. HRH Haruna maintained the by law has been effective, because he led by example.
He noted, “I started with myself, our land located at Mazah, we have been able to share it with my younger brothers and other siblings who are female. And then we have a house here in Jos that was left out parents. The girls, my sisters have their own portion.”
He recounts a dispute where male siblings attempted to exclude their elder sister from inheriting their parents’ house, and how the by law came to the rescue.
“A family insisted on denying their elder sister her inheritance in their parents property, I called the men and I said, you know, we have bylaws. If you don’t agree with what I’m saying, you will appear before the traditional council to explain, and then we will definitely charge you, and definitely you must share the property with them, the girls..
He announced that the outcome was decisive as the women inherited their share, saying, “In fact, various portions of the house were shared amongst the children of the parents, both the male and the female, everybody has a portion.”
While Nabor District’s traditional council currently has no female members, the District Head admits the need for inclusion.He stressed, “We have not had any woman in my council but we are earnestly looking at that possibility because inclusion fosters belonging. If we introduce a woman, at least in the traditional Council, I think it will also give a sense of belonging to the women.”
He called on his fellow traditional rulers to treat people fairly, and give special consideration to women.
He added, “Now in our communities, there’s no differences with a child, whether girl child or boy child. People are willing to look for resources, and train their children, either the boy or the girl child.”
In giving justice, he believes, the community gains peace and unity.
Awareness as Power: Bugomo’s Six-Month Reform
In the Bugomo (also known as Congo-Russia) community in the Jos North LGA, the Village Head, Ugomo Bala Auta is six months into implementing a similar by-law.
The results, though recent, are promising.He told this reporter, “Any issue that has to do with women especially GBV we’re trying to take care of that and give the survivors justice. We also don’t want people to harass women using early marriages or rape, or do something harmful to women especially in the issue of inheritance.”
Awareness, he says, is key.”I have an example of one Baba in my community, he shared his inheritance with his own girls because of the awareness we created. When I started in my own village in their presence, he said, Why not? You can see the ladies are the one helping most of the houses.
“He has daughters somewhere who always send something to take care of him and his boys are somewhere doing their own business, but the ladies take care of him more than the boys. That’s what prompted the Baba to take the decision.”
The narrative challenges long-held assumptions about value and return. When women are empowered, they often reinvest in their families and communities.
The Village Head insisted, “Our awareness is increasing, I have more women working with us at the Village Council to address issues, I ask other Village Heads to include women in their own traditional council, the women are very important, they will help.”
Perseverance and Progress: Gyel’s 15-Year Journey
In the Gyel community, Jos South, reform has a longer history. The traditional council’s by-law is 15 years old this year.Jonathan Dangyang, the Secretary of the Gyel Traditional Council, recalls initial resistance but expressed joy that perseverance has brought justice and progress.
He said, “The by law is working effectively, because we also have people om ground that serve as watchdogs in order to implement the by law, and because we are receiving a lot of cooperation, there is a significant progress.
“Before the journey started, it was not easy because there are people that criticised it, and some people resisted it because of the liberty and freedom they had trampling on the right of women, girls and children, especially in terms of landed inheritance, it was a problem at the beginning, but now, we have achieved some level of success.
“In the past year alone, nine to eleven women have had justice as their land inheritance cases have been settled.
Dangyang disclosed, “In the last one year, we have settled land inheritance for about nine to 11 women, we also have women in the traditional Council. Importantly, the Council expanded inclusion beyond married women.”We discovered that we were dealing with only married women. So we decided to improve by involving ladies that are not married, the single people.”
He frames representation as justice itself, stating, “Their presence in the traditional Council is also a way of justice, it is a voice for women and girls… the single girl in the traditional Council is also a voice for the single lady. So we take decisions together.”
His advice to the traditional institution resonates strongly with the theme of International Women’s Day 2026.
According to him, “The traditional ruler should understand that you don’t need to allow your culture or tradition to harm your women or your daughters. When the tradition is beginning to harm a woman, then it no longer a tradition so the traditional ruler should dissociate himself from such tradition.
“Leadership, he insists, can dismantle harmful norms because, “Once the people discover that the traditional ruler has detached himself from any harmful practice, in fact, it will go a long way to address injustice. Once he has said no to that practice, his word is a law to the entire community.”
The Fursum District’s move from ignorance to responsibility
In Fursum District of Jos East, injustice once wore the mask of tradition. Practices were passed down unquestioned, not because they were just, but because they were familiar.
Recently exposed to the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) law, the Traditional Ruler of Fursum District, Adagwom Musa Usman, acknowledges past ignorance that fueled injustice against women.
He assures, “As a leader I’ll do all it takes to make sure that our people do the right thing for the betterment of the society, violence and injustice against persons, especially women, has no place in modern society.“
Similarly, Ada Bulus Ibrahim, Village Head of Ribun, reflects on the overlap between culture and injustice, and promise
“As a person, I’m obligated to sensitise the people of Ribun to discard injustice as our culture and laws have often overlapped. Many of our people have acted in ignorance and we have now seen the light.”
Ignorance is no longer an excuse. Awareness brings responsibility.Civil society actor, Zainab Gbobaniyi underscores the strategic importance of traditional institutions in addressing injustice.
Her words “The leaders are the gatekeepers. When action is taken against violators you can rest assured that deterrence will hinder these harmful practices.”
The Gain in GivingThe message of International Women’s Day 2026
Give To Gain is vividly illustrated in these communities.When girls inherit property, families reduce disputes and strengthen bonds.When early marriage declines, education rises.
When women sit at decision-making tables, councils make more informed choices.When harmful traditions are abandoned, unity replaces fear.Justice given to women does not diminish culture; it refines it.
It does not erode authority; it strengthens legitimacy, it does not fracture families; it brings unity and secures their future.When communities invest in women and give justice, they gain peace. When they protect women’s rights, they gain productivity. When they amplify women’s voices, they gain wisdom
As International Women’s Day 2026 is celebrated, the theme Give To Gain challenges communities everywhere to reflect: what happens when justice is withheld? And what transformation becomes possible when it is given freely?
In Plateau State, traditional rulers are demonstrating that justice for women is not a concession, it is an investment in harmony, growth and collective prosperity.When communities give justice to women, society gains.