Social and gender norms shape economic opportunities and obstacles for all individuals. The expectations of acceptable and appropriate behavior for women and girls contribute to barriers—related to access to services, resources, and markets, care responsibilities, and control over assets and incomes—that impede their economic empowerment. Implementing norm shift strategies is critical for addressing gender inequalities and bolstering women’s economic empowerment (WEE).

This resource brief was developed under the Gender Integration Technical Assistance (GITA) II Task Order for USAID/Nigeria staff and implementing partners to better understand the significance of gender norms and evidence-based approaches to transform them. The brief provides examples of programming in Nigeria that utilizes proven approaches for advancing norms change, based on the Advancing Women’s Economic Empowerment: Social Norms Landscaping Study. The brief is organized into five sections—1) What are Social Norms and Why do They Matter?; 2) How do Norms Affect Women’s Economic Empowerment?; 3) How are Norms Analyzed and Measured?; 4) How to Identify Risks Associated with Norm Change and Mitigate Backlash?; and 5) What Type of Norm Shifting Interventions Have the Strongest Evidence Base? It includes interactive links to additional tools and resources.

To learn more about Banyan Global’s social norms work in Nigeria, refer to Transforming Gender Norms for Women’s Economic Empowerment in Nigeria.