In a world where age is often seen as a barrier to making a difference, Kehinde Abereoje is shattering expectations. At just 22, this activist has enjoyed numerous accolades and earned herself the prestigious 2024 Diana Award. She founded the Purple Pact Initiative, a nonprofit organization dedicated to challenging the systemic barriers that prevent women and girls from accessing opportunities and living meaningful lives. From tackling period poverty to addressing gender-based violence, Kehinde aims to break barriers and create a world of gender equality. In this interview with TheCable Lifestyle’s VICTORY ORIMEMI, the Cambridge graduate opens up about her journey, the challenges she has faced, and what fuels her relentless pursuit of change.
TheCable Lifestyle: What inspired you to start the Purple Pact Initiative, and how has your vision for the initiative evolved over the years?
Kehinde Abereoje: I think I’ll take the first one. What inspired me to start was seeing how girls and women were treated differently. I didn’t have that experience because I grew up as a twin, and my twin was a boy, right? So we were kind of treated the same.

In my family, we were feminists in the sense that we did the same things. I didn’t notice any disparities in how people were treated based on their gender. I thought gender was just an identity—like you’re male, you’re female, and that’s it. But as I grew older and started talking to people, I began hearing things like, “In my family, boys do things like this, and girls do things like that”, and it just became weird.
I think the turning point for me came when I visited the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp for the first time. At the time, I was living in Abuja. There was a time there was insecurity and some of my classmates and I decided we wanted to make a difference.
I always knew I wanted to make a difference. I always felt I was meant to. When I visited the IDP camp, I was about 14 years old. It was one of those December visits where people go to give things, but we had this smart idea of taking books instead. Since we had lots of books in school, we asked everyone to bring out their old ones. We ended up collecting a large number of books, alongside other items and took them to the camp.
I remember someone walking up to me and saying, “Thank you for all the things you brought. We wouldn’t have had these if you didn’t bring them.” But then she added, “Next time, we hope you bring sanitary pads for us.” That shook me. I never knew sanitary pads were a luxury for some people.
Growing up, my family always had a pantry, and my mom made sure sanitary pads were stocked. Once I started my period, it was like picking milk from the shelf—something we never ran out of. So it was confusing to hear that something so basic was inaccessible to others.
At the time, I didn’t do anything about it. I was just 14, in SS1. But the thought stayed with me. By the time I was done with university and had to decide on a life path, I asked myself, “What do you want to do? What do you want to be remembered for? What kind of life do you want to live?”
I prayed about it, and it became clear that I had to do something to help girls and women. That’s how Purple Pact started. I realised there are certain things women and girls don’t have access to—things that are necessities but seem like luxuries to them.
What has shaped my vision over the past six years is seeing the state people are in during our interventions. They lack the basics. These aren’t luxuries; they are necessities. Periods don’t stop for war, terrorism, or poverty. They keep happening. So why aren’t we doing more to support people?
Another driving factor is my desire for girls and women to make informed decisions. Through interacting with people online and in person, I’ve realized many don’t understand how deeply their choices are influenced by societal norms, like patriarchy and misogyny. My goal is to help people understand themselves better.
That’s why we have a program called SHAPE (Sexual Health Education and Enlightenment Program), where we try and tell people to understand their bodies. Sex is not a taboo. Because people that don’t understand sex are usually the ones that are exploited the most. That lack of understanding is why cases of sexual assault and violence go unreported or are normalised.
My vision is to achieve gender equality. I know that women need to be seen as more than just property or just like another gender. Like before they are women, they are humans first. So that’s what has shaped my vision.
TheCable Lifestyle: Can you share any pivotal moments or challenges you encountered while advocating for women’s equality and combating period poverty in Nigeria?
Kehinde Abereoje: I think one of the biggest challenges we face is finances. There is actually no funding for things like this. You’d think there would be, but there aren’t, especially in Nigeria. I don’t think the Nigerian government or the Nigerian people have realised that period poverty is a problem. So, funding has been one of the main challenges I’ve faced, trying to raise money for these causes, as they can also be quite expensive.
Another challenge I’ve faced is people insulting me, mainly because of my social media. I advocate for these causes, and there’s this widespread backlash against feminism. There’s been a mainstream objection to feminism that has only worsened over the years. So, once they see the funding list, people start insulting me. If I talk about issues like women’s health, women’s bodies, sexual assault, or sexual violence, they insult me and my parents. But honestly, it doesn’t really matter to me because these are people whose opinions don’t affect me.
Right now, on my Twitter, I can tell you that my last post had 30 insults from different guys, but they didn’t matter. That’s just one of the challenges that come with this.

Another issue is people not taking me seriously because I started when I was young. When I tell people what I want to do, they laugh me off or try to tell me that I’m dreaming too big or that things are just the way they are. They say things like, “You can’t change certain things. Gender roles have always existed. My surgery, my treatment, they’ve always been this way, and you can’t just change them.” Those kinds of comments have been challenging.
But again, it’s been really helpful knowing why I’m doing this. I know that it’s not impossible, as long as I keep trying and contribute to my own culture. One thing I always say is, “I’m changing the world one life at a time.” And if that’s all I do until the end of my life, I’m comfortable with that. So, yeah, I think those are some of the challenges I’ve faced so far.
TheCable Lifestyle: I admire how thick-skinned you are about these insults. It’s not easy to stay focused when people throw such negativity your way, but it’s clear you’re not letting it hold you back.
Kehinde Abereoje: I think they’re faceless so I don’t care. If they see you in person, they can’t even say these things.
TheCable Lifestyle: Right! You mentioned funding as a challenge earlier. How have you managed to raise funds for your work over the years? Also, do you think the backlash you face as a feminist comes from people not fully understanding what feminism is about? Could it be that their ignorance fuels these attacks, especially online?
Kehinde Abereoje: Regarding funding, we’ve mostly relied on self-sponsored personal funds. Recently, we’ve been fundraising by asking people to donate. We have some volunteers and supporters on social media, so we reach out to them for support.
Most of our funding comes from family and friends, as well as donations. However, we’re expanding and planning to integrate a business venture to help fund Purple Pact. That’s still in the works, so I can’t comment much on it now. One area we’re focusing on aggressively this year is approaching governments for support. We’re looking to secure funding by designing interventions that they can sponsor, allowing us to implement these projects on their behalf.
As for the second question, whether I think people don’t understand feminism, I don’t believe that’s the case. I used to make excuses for people, thinking they didn’t understand feminism. But now, I think it’s a case of intentional ignorance. People choose not to understand because understanding feminism might challenge their power or change their beliefs.
Men, in particular, benefit the most from patriarchy because it allows them to feel a sense of ownership over women. It’s similar to the mentality during the slave trade; I doubt people back then genuinely believed it was right to treat humans as property. But they avoided challenging it because they didn’t want to lose the benefits.
Feminism faces similar resistance. People intentionally misconstrue it, portraying it negatively to make it less acceptable. But I think we’ve moved past the era of seeking “acceptable feminism.” The focus now is on enforcing policies that make feminism non-negotiable.
Feminism has a straightforward definition—it’s available on Google. Yet people insist it means something else, often to discredit the movement. The backlash against feminism isn’t due to misunderstanding; it’s a deliberate choice not to understand it.
TheCable Lifestyle: That’s an interesting perspective. Speaking of making an impact, you were recently honoured with the 2024 Diana Award, which celebrates young leaders driving social change. What does this recognition mean to you?
Kehinde Abereoje: I’m not usually moved by things like this, but it’s nice to know that your work is being recognised. It shows that even if you’re working quietly, what you’re doing still matters. To me, it also means that other people can dream. I’m just an ordinary girl, and if I can receive an award like the Diana Award, it gives others permission to dream and aspire to change the world.
I know that there’s recognition for the effort you put in. I’ve been doing this for six years, and the award is only coming now. It shows others to keep going—not for the award, but because they genuinely want to make a difference.
TheCable Lifestyle: In April, you spoke at the United Nations headquarters about the need to end period poverty as a critical step toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). What practical actions can governments and communities implement to tackle this issue effectively?
Kehinde Abereoje: Yeah, so I think one of the ways we can address this is—okay, I’ll set some context first. The reason I say this is because a lot of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are closely tied to period poverty. I’ve tried to study this, even if only superficially.

For example, in education: many people drop out of school or experience absenteeism because they can’t afford sanitary pads. People get infections because of things like this. Using sanitary products, like we use disposable sanitary products, right? It leads to environmental waste, which stops clean water and sanitation.
Water and sanitation are also linked to period poverty. So like there are a lot of links and I think that the government should focus a lot on ending period poverty. I feel like it will solve a lot of problems. I think governments need to focus more on ending period poverty because doing so will solve many related issues.
One way to tackle this is by ensuring that period products are affordable, particularly for the most vulnerable members of society. One effective step would be removing the luxury tax on period products. That way, manufacturers cannot inflate the prices of their goods based on the fact that they know that people need them as a necessity.
Those are some of the ways. I also think that sensitizing people on period poverty is another way to do it. Sensitizing people, letting them know that you’re meant to do X, Y, Z. Because period poverty also comes from a lack of menstrual health knowledge. And I think another way is to incorporate water and sanitation facilities in schools and public spaces to ensure access to sanitary toilets.
TheCable Lifestyle: Your recent research on intimate partner violence policies sheds light on systemic barriers. What findings surprised you the most, and which changes would you consider the most urgent to address?
Kehinde Abereoje: I think what I found most surprising is that protection orders in some states only apply within those states, not across the entire country. For example, in Abuja, if you get a protection order against someone who has abused you, it prohibits them from coming near you anywhere in Nigeria. But in some other states, protection orders are only enforceable within that state.
So if you travel to a neighboring state, relocate, or go somewhere else, your abuser can harm you there without breaching the protection order. That’s one of the things I found most surprising.
Another surprising issue is the ridiculously low fines for certain crimes. For instance, in some northern states, fines for crimes like abuse are as low as ₦5,000. That just shows that we value lives less because why would you punish someone for a crime for 5,000 Naira against another person when the name of the act is Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act? Those are some of the things I found surprising.

I’d like for us to ensure that protection orders are enforceable across all states in Nigeria, not just within individual states. This is essential for the safety of survivors. Remove unnecessary conditions like marital status. You shouldn’t need to be married to file a charge for violence or abuse. I think we need to review the entire Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act and make sure that it is domesticated by all states in the same manner because I think the fact that they let people edit what they wanted from the main VAPP that came out in 2015 is problematic because that’s why some states have added something.
They need some things that make it not to be uniform. So I think we need a uniform VAPP Act on standardization of definitions and improved protection of others.
TheCable Lifestyle: As someone who started making a difference at 16, what advice would you give to young people who want to make an impact but feel held back by age or inexperience?
Kehinde Abereoje: The best way to do it is to have started, right? The best step to take is to take a step, and you don’t have to worry about your age. Your age is just a number. It only allows you to make more mistakes than you can afford.
So you can make more mistakes and correct them fast. Also, because these are the formative years of your life, they help you figure out the kind of person you need to be as you grow older. Personally, for me, I know the kind of person I want to be. I know the kind of change I want to make, and that’s come from doing it since I was 16.
Don’t stop trying to be better. Don’t stop networking. Just keep trying and trying to make change, because the people that need you the most are the people who are losing.
TheCable Lifestyle: You’ve accomplished so much at just 22. What are your personal goals for the next five years?
Kehinde Abereoje: In the next five years, I hope we will have reached more than two million women, which is kind of fictitious. Anything is possible. Yeah, I want us to have reached two million women. I hope in the next five years that I’m still here. I’m still doing this. I hope in the next five years that I don’t lose sight of what is important for Purple Pact and for myself. I also hope in the next five years that I will have advocated for better policies to end care poverty in Nigeria.
Yes, those are the things I hope to accomplish in the next five years.
TheCable Lifestyle: Beyond your advocacy work, do you have other interests?
Kehinde Abereoje: Yes, I love spending time with my family. I like listening to worship songs because I love God. I’m nothing without Him. So, spending time with my family, worshipping, and praying. I also like sleeping. I don’t want to lie. I enjoy sleeping. I think that’s my number one. Okay, after God, that’s my second interest. Those are some of the things that I find interesting.
TheCable Lifestyle: If you could change one thing about how society approaches gender equality in Nigeria, what would it be?
Kehinde Abereoje: I think that people believe they’re doing women a favor. They think we’re asking for change because we want to be recognized. They don’t realize it’s how it’s meant to be. Like I said, we are humans first before we are women. We just want to be treated like humans. I want you to treat me the way you treat a human being, not as a man or a woman. I think that’s what other people want as well.
If there’s anything I could change, it would be the fact that people think they’re doing us a favor by even listening to conversations on gender equality. For instance, men often think that being allies automatically makes them good people or that they’re doing someone a favor. That’s not it, and it’s something I would change.
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