By Rita Okonkwo
Nigerian experts are urging a national shift in how society treats single mothers, warning that stigma is driving discrimination, economic hardship, and psychological distress for millions of women and children.
The calls followed recent research and advocacy highlighting the structural barriers single-parent households face across the country.
A 2022 study from the University of Nigeria Nsukka titled “Single Mothers and the Challenge of Stigma in Enugu Metropolis, Nigeria” found that discrimination, economic stress, and social exclusion are daily realities for single mothers in Enugu.
The study was authored by Prof. Victor Udemezue Onyebueke, Senior Lecturer, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus, alongside Nonso Okeke and Chika Ezugwu. It documented resilience, noting that many mothers resist stigma through community support and self-reliance.
Experts say language is a key driver of stigma. Religion, media, and community actors were being asked to retire terms such as “bastard,” “illegitimate” and “broken home”, and to stop labeling children as “ọ tọ n’aka nne” or “child without a father at home.” Advocates argue that identity must be separated from marital status.
On the psychological impact, Prof. Ayodeji Badejo, Professor of Counselling Psychology, Department of Educational Foundations and Counselling Psychology, University of Lagos, described single motherhood as often “conditional,” linked to divorce, widowhood, or partners avoiding responsibility. She cautioned that stigma should not be allowed to erode self-esteem.
On the economic dimension, Dr. Uche Emeka-Nwobia, Executive Director, Women Empowerment and Economic Transformation Initiative (WEETI), has documented how single-parent households often move from social stigma to economic hardship; saying that access to finance, business formalisation, and childcare is critical to protecting children’s welfare.
Researchers and advocates are calling on schools, employers, banks, and landlords to make decisions based on merit and legal eligibility, not marital status. They also recommend flexible work policies, non-discriminatory practices, and community childcare cooperatives.
“Nigeria’s single mothers are not a deficits. Many are raising academically and socially strong children, running businesses, and contributing to civic life. Reframing single motherhood as resilience, not failure, will align policy with reality and strengthen social stability”, they argue.
Rita Okonkwo is of the Ministry of Information and Value Reformation Anambra State
