The African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development (Centre LSD) has urged the National Assembly to pass the proposed Reserved Seats Bill for women, citing the need for constitutional intervention to address the under-representation of women in Nigeria's political leadership. Centre LSD's Founding Executive Director, Dr. Otive Igbuzor, made the call in Abuja at a press conference during the Gender Mainstreaming Training for various stakeholders.
Dr. Igbuzor argued that countries with significant progress in female political participation have used constitutional and institutional mechanisms to address historical inequalities. He stated that the proposed reserved or special seats arrangement could provide women with greater access to legislative positions. Nigeria, despite having women constitute about half of the population, remains one of the countries with very low representation of women in political institutions.
The low number of women contesting elective positions should not be interpreted as a lack of interest or capacity among women, but rather as a result of historical, economic, institutional, and socio-cultural barriers that have limited their participation. Dr. Igbuzor cautioned against asking why women were not coming forward to contest presidential and governorship positions, saying such a question placed the burden on women instead of addressing the structures that make political participation difficult for them.
Dr. Igbuzor said women had suffered economic marginalization for generations, while social norms had continued to reinforce the perception that women should occupy domestic rather than leadership roles. He emphasized that the political environment must be transformed to create a level playing field for women seeking elective office. Political parties, communities, and other institutions have responsibilities in this regard.
Centre LSD also called on the media to intensify monitoring and reporting of the proposed reserved seats legislation, urging newspapers and other media organizations to regularly track developments around the bill. Sustained public attention would help keep the issue on the national agenda and encourage relevant institutions to act. The struggle for increased women's representation is not peculiar to Nigeria, with women in many countries historically obtaining voting rights and access to political participation later than men.
The call came as Centre LSD launched the Women Can Lead Project, a 24-month initiative supported by the Ford Foundation and designed to strengthen women's participation, leadership, and influence in governance and public life. The project will be implemented in Benue State, Kano State, and the Federal Capital Territory, with an emphasis on gender mainstreaming and meaningful inclusion of women in governance.
The project aims to address structural, institutional, economic, and socio-cultural barriers limiting women's participation and influence in decision-making. Centre LSD will train Gender Desk Officers and establish an Intersectional Women's Leadership and Governance Incubator to support women from diverse backgrounds. The organization also plans to establish Community Social Norms Labs to examine and challenge beliefs and practices that perpetuate inequality and gender-based violence.
Key points
- Centre LSD urges the National Assembly to pass the Reserved Seats Bill to increase women's representation in governance.
- The Women Can Lead Project aims to strengthen women's participation, leadership, and influence in governance and public life.
- The project will address structural, institutional, economic, and socio-cultural barriers limiting women's participation and influence in decision-making.
