Religion & Sexuality in Nigeria

Religion and sexuality are intertwined in Nigeria, with religious beliefs helping to define sexualattitudes, practices, and identifications in the country. I will use various sources of informationsuch as scientific journals and other articles to analyze how religion affects sexual rights or healthof individuals, spread of STIs among marginalized groups and communication which is used insexual education. According to these findings, conservative religious norms largely shapesocieties’ understanding about sex by leading to stigmatization against LGBTQ plus persons aswell as limiting their access to comprehensive sexuality education. In addition, the subjectaddresses complexities around modern human rights concerns on sexuality in Nigeria bycomparing between traditional practices. The focus of this research is on the intricate relationshipbetween religion and sexuality with regard to Nigeria where it specifically examines howreligious beliefs affect sexual behavior as well as attitudes in Nigerian society. Drawing from avariety of sources such as scholarly journals and research papers,this study looks at the effect ofreligious teachings on reproductive rights, sexual transmitted diseases among marginalizedgroups and communication as one of the means through which people learn about sex. The mainfindings show that conservative religious norms have a significant influence upon societalperspectives concerning sex leading to its stigmatization for those who identify themselves asLesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transgenders and Queer people (LGBTQ) and inhibitingcomprehensive sexuality education. These also bring out the complexity inherent in modernsexual right issues within Nigeria by juxtaposing traditional believes with current challenges.This paper examines how religion shapes sexual life amongst Nigerians by investigating into thenexus between religion and sexuality. This research uses different mixed research design that usesqualitative interviews with quantitative surveys and materials like academic journals and researcharticles for examining how religious teachings can affect reproductive rights, STIs rates amongvulnerable populations, and communication strategies employed for teaching sex topics. Keyresults disclose that conservative religious values play an important role in shaping society’sattitudes towards sex thus leading to improper characterizations which lead into stigma forLesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, and Transgenders and Queer persons (LGBTQ) hence hindering theirfull access to sexual education. These also outline the complexities in present day Nigerian sexualright issues combining traditional practices with modern trends. The research’s aim is to providea better understanding of how sexuality and religion interact in order to guide those who caninfluence policies or decisions that impact on sexual health. The study therefore providesdiffering viewpoints for educators, policy makers, and activists engaged in the development ofinclusive and informed sexual health strategies in Nigeria.