Positive Masculinity: A path to ending violence against women and girls

Gender-based violence (GBV) remains a widespread human rights violation, significantly impacting women and girls across Africa. Despite legislative efforts, deeply rooted patriarchal norms and unequal power structures continue to perpetuate violence, discrimination, and systemic gender inequalities. GBV manifests in many forms, including domestic violence, sexual harassment, and economic disempowerment, limiting the full participation of women and girls in society.

A key strategy in combating GBV is the promotion of positive masculinity, which encourages men and boys to embrace healthier, more respectful behaviors while rejecting harmful norms that fuel violence and inequality. Positive masculinity emphasizes empathy, accountability, and gender equality, enhancing respectful relationships and encouraging men to become allies in advancing gender justice. Engaging men and boys in this way promotes healthier family dynamics, safer workplaces, and more responsive policies that benefit entire communities.

On 22nd and 23rd April 2025, UN Women, in collaboration with End Child Prostitution and Trafficking, Plan International, FEMNET, Equality Now, the Kenya Alliance for the Advancement of Children, the Horn of Africa Youth Network, and other partners, organized a two-day regional workshop on positive masculinity and the fight against GBV, under the theme "Empowering Girls and Young Women for Transformative Leadership by Fighting GBV and Addressing Toxic Masculinity."

The forum convened a diverse group of participants, including representatives from civil society organizations working on gender equality, youth empowerment, and digital rights; government officials and youth advisors from ministries responsible for gender and youth affairs; regional and international partners; and male allies committed to challenging toxic masculinity and promoting gender justice both online and offline.

“This Regional Forum will inform the ratification and implementation of the African Union (AU) Convention on Ending Violence against Women and Girls (EVAWG), as well as promote positive masculinity. The landmark Convention, now adopted by AU Heads of State and Government, is a critical step towards addressing GBV and advancing gender equality in Africa,” said Anne Wang'ombe, Principal Secretary, State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action.

The workshop equipped participants with critical skills, knowledge, and self-efficacy to influence decision-making spaces and drive substantive progress toward gender equality. It emphasized the deconstruction of toxic masculinity and tackled GBV both in physical spaces and online. The forum also advocated for the ratification of the AU Convention on Ending Violence against Women and Girls and promoted strategies for digital safety, advocacy, and multi-sectoral approaches to gender justice.

“Positive masculinity is a powerful tool in our collective journey towards gender justice. It calls on men and boys to reject harmful norms that equate manhood with dominance, aggression, or control. Instead, it promotes empathy, accountability, respect, and partnership. Positive masculinity encourages men to become allies to foster healthier relationships,” said Antonia N’Gabala - Sodonon, UN Women Kenya Representative.

Advancing positive masculinity requires sustained practical strategies that challenge harmful gender norms and meaningfully engage men and boys as partners in change.

Last month, the global community convened at the 69th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) and the Beijing+30 review to assess progress toward gender equality, thirty years after the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action. CSW69 reaffirmed that engaging men and boys is essential to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality.

“I am happy to report that UN Women, the State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action, and other stakeholders have already facilitated the first draft of a National Male Engagement and Inclusion Strategy,” Antonia concluded.