EU Says Inclusion of Women in Politics, Governance Important for Sustainable Devt

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The European Union (EU) Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Samuela Isopi, has stated that the active participation of women in decision-making and politics remains important if Nigeria is to achieve equality, sustainable development, peace, and democracy.

She noted that while women have the fundamental right to participate in political life, most of them still face a lot of social, cultural, and financial challenges.

Isopi reminded stakeholders, especially the National Assembly, that the ongoing constitution reform process presents Nigeria with a unique opportunity to join the league of progressive nations in promoting gender parity through the adoption of a legal framework that discourages discrimination based on gender.

Isopi, who was represented by the EU Deputy Head of Mission to Nigeria, Zissimos Vergos, made this known in Abuja, during a two-day roundtable on women inclusion in politics, in commemoration of the International Women’s week.

 It was organised by the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN), with the theme: “Women’s Underrepresentation: Exploring the Use of Temporary Special Measures to Elect Women to Parliaments.”

“Over the years, strategies to increase women’s participation in politics have been advanced through conventions, protocols, and international agreements for gender mainstreaming. However, they are yet to prove effective in achieving gender parity in the highest government rankings.

“Thus, women continue to be underrepresented in government, and face barriers that often make it difficult for them to access, exercise political power, and assume leadership positions.

 “In Nigeria, the advocacy for women’s political participation has been long drawn, and in spite of the very dynamic interventions by women groups and other key stakeholders, their representation remains in steady decline.

“For example, women’s representation in the 10th National Assembly is 7.4 per cent out of a total of 469 combined seats in the Senate and House of Representatives,” she said.

She stressed that there is strong evidence that as more women are elected to office, there is an increase in policymaking that emphasises quality of life, and reflects the priorities of families, women, and marginalised groups.

“Women tend to work across party lines, be highly responsive to constituent concerns, help secure lasting peace, encourage citizen confidence in democracy through their own participation, and prioritise health, education, and other key development indicators.

 “Women’s political leadership may not be the only answer to sustainable development, but the foregoing underscores the important contributions women offer when given equal opportunities to men. We must therefore strive for a society where every woman does not just feel safe enough to survive but empowered enough to thrive,” she adde.

In his remarks, the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu,, explained that women bring immense value to nation-building, particularly as they are more thorough, unbiased, look beyond themselves, and are selfless.

He said: “What the best performing African countries regarding female representation have in common is the adoption of electoral quotas for women; a system which is not present in the nations at the bottom of the ranking.

“Unfortunately, Nigeria happens to be one of them. The last position is Nigeria, with only 4 per cent of women holding seats in the House of Representatives, and 3.6 per cent in the Senate. That is sad,” he added.

On her part, Chair, Senate Committee on Women Affairs, Senator Ireti Kingibe, said as of the 9th Assembly, Nigeria ranked 182 out of 186 countries in the world in terms of women in governance and politics.

Nigeria, she said, faces significant gaps in women participation across all arms and levels of governance, reflecting a pressing need for increased gender inclusivity.

The Chair, House Committee on Women in Parliament, Hon. Fatima Talba added that: “There is an urgent need to address the imbalance that we are seeing today in governance. There is a need to address women’s inclusion in politics and building bridges to empower women in politics.”

Executive Director, Policy, and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), Mr. Clement Nwankwo, in his remarks, decried the unfair social, cultural, and political hurdles women have to scale to be able to hold political offices.