'Positive Masculinity' changing the game in Africa

"Where do you learn to be a man?" That's the question 24-year-old Nkosikhona Fakudze is grappling with in eSwatini, as he navigates his relationship with his girlfriend and daily life while his father is away as a migrant worker.

- Gaia Chiti Strigelli, Tapiwa Uchizi Nyasulu and Cynthia Amanda Lungu

Amid growing concerns globally about young men opposing women’s rights, a new concept is rising across Africa: Positive Masculinity. Research from the Joint UN Regional Programme 2gether 4 SRHR shows it’s sparking important conversations in the media, communities, and policy - and it’s helping young men like Nkosikhona who want to do the right thing.

So, how’s this playing out in practice? From Nkosikhona’s personal journey to regional policies, here are five initiatives that are changing the narrative around masculinity across Africa.

Eswatini's club for young men

With his father out of the house, Nkosikhona found the answers he was looking for on how to be a man at Kwakha Indvodza. It’s a community initiative in Eswatini that meets men and boys in the places men traditionally congregate, such as gyms. In the past five years, more than 4,100 adolescent boys and young men have enrolled in the programme. Supported by UNAIDS and UNFPA, men and boys come together to talk about taboo issues, often concerning the sexual and reproductive health rights of the women in their lives. The shifts have been tangible: 65% have since accessed health services, including for HIV testing, condom usage and referrals for sexually transmitted infections. “I get my sex education here, at Kwakha Indvodza,” says Nkosikhona. “I remember the things I learn when I am with my girlfriend... like how important it is to use condoms so that we don't get HIV. She said to me, ‘I love you because you want to keep me safe and make me happy’.”

Uganda’s 'male engagement strategy'