Paper short abstract:

Rising levels of migration and traditional customs such as Omugwo are pushing Nigerian fathers and grandfathers into a new type of bachelorhood as their families relocate abroad without them. What are the socio-cultural implications of this trend on masculinity, gender relations and familyhood?

Paper long abstract:

One of the effects of the alarming rate of migration called Japa in Nigerian parlance is the nascent trend in a growing number of married men in Nigeria -- fathers and grandfathers entering a new type of bachelorhood as their families relocate abroad without them. Often, such separations, which last from a few months to several years, may arise from mothers securing a new job, or more especially from the traditional customs of Omugwo whereby grandmothers travel to their daughters’ homes abroad to provide live-in post-partum care after the birth of a child. Perceived in some quarters as a ‘gang up’ of wives and daughters against men, Omugwo has resulted in a form of ‘rebachelorisation’, a situation whereby fathers left behind are thrown back to a life of ‘singlehood’ characterised by domestic drudgery, frailty, loneliness, depression, and even reckless socialisation. This understudied trend raises questions of social and cultural import. What does it say about the valorisation of masculinity? How does it affect gender relations in a fast-evolving society? How does it implicate familyhood? Drawing on ecological theories of family, this study seeks to analyse data gathered from in-depth Interviews and questionnaire responses of affected male respondents to examine the cultural and social implications of this trend on masculinity, gender relations and familyhood.

Keywords: Japa, Omugwo, masculinity, gender relations, familyhood