On March 4 and 5, Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC) in collaboration with the Nigerian Women Trust Fund (NWTF) and ElectHER, with support from the European Union in Nigeria, organised a Rountable on Women Inclusion in Politics. The meeting was attended by female members of the National and State Houses of Assembly and civil society organisations.
On first day of the meeting which was themed ‘Women’s Underrepresentation: Exploring the Use of Temporary Special Measures to Elect Women to Parliaments.’ Executive Director of PLAC, Clement Nwankwo delivered the welcome remarks, noting that the outcome of 2023 general elections underscores the need for the issue of women inclusion to be brought to the front burner of national discourse.
The Ambassador of the European Union Delegation to Nigeria & ECOWAS, who was represented by the Deputy Ambassador, Zissimos Vergus gave a goodwill message, emphasising electoral reform, gender bills and partnership between the National Assembly and the European Union Parliament as three priority areas for the Delegation.
Chair of the Senate Committee on Women Affairs, Senator Ireti Kingibe in her goodwill remarks, noted that fostering inclusivity is not just a goal, but a developmental need in the country. She added that Nigeria faces tremendous gaps in the inclusion of women in politics and that changing the psyche of men about inclusion is very important. She further underscored that party politics is where the process of inclusion must start from.
Delivering the opening remarks at the event, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu decried the dwindling state of women participation in all spheres of society and stated that women inclusion and participation forms a fundamental democratic principle all over the world, and Nigeria should not be left out. He further observed that there was an urgent need to bridge the gap in women participation through innovative ways. He submitted that women representation in the Nigerian Parliament paints a stark picture of gender disparity and shows the need for urgent intervention.
The Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. (Prof.) Julius Ihonvbere who delivered the keynote address at the event, identified systemic challenges that inhibit the participation of women in politics, and called for attitudinal change within the political class and structural improvements in political parties to support improved political inclusion of women.
Over the course of two days, the event featured panel discussions and interactive sessions by the participants on issues such as Temporary Special Measures to improve women’s political representation, gender responsive budgeting and the cost of political inclusion.