As the world celebrates International Women’s Day, Nigeria once again stands as a glaring paradox, wearing the mask of false progress, pretending to honor its women while continuing to fail them in every way imaginable. Behind the facade of progress lies a grim tableau of marginalization, where the voices of women are stifled, their potentials quashed, and their rights violated with impunity. Beyond the public grandstanding, colorful march pasts, flowery speeches; beyond the empty promises, and the social media hashtags lies a brutal truth: the Nigerian government has systematically neglected, oppressed, and failed its women and girls. Women in Nigeria are more likely to live in poverty, suffer violence, be denied an education, and die during childbirth than their male counterparts. These are not abstract statistics. These are the realities of millions of Nigerian women whose cries for justice have been silenced by indifference and oppression.
A democracy that silences its mothers and daughters is a patriarchy. In the grand halls of Nigerian democracy, women are but spectral figures. The statistics are not just numbers; they are damning indictments of a patriarchal system that relegates women to the periphery. In the 2023 elections, women secured a meager 3.6% of Senate seats and an abysmal 3.9% in the House of Representatives. Out of 109 senators, only four are women, down from seven in the 9th legislature; in the 360-member House, women occupy merely 14 seats. The gubernatorial landscape is a barren desert for women, with zero female governors across Nigeria’s 36 states. The state Houses of Assembly fare no better, with women’s representation lingering in the single digits. At the grassroots level, where policies directly impact daily lives, women’s representation is less than 5%. The Federal Executive Council, Nigeria’s cabinet, remains overwhelmingly male, with women holding eight (22%) of ministerial positions.
These figures are not mere oversights; they are the manifestations of a deep-seated misogyny that pervades the political fabric of our nation.
Despite its lofty rhetoric about equality, the 1999 constitution has remained a tool for the subjugation of women. Nigeria’s national gender policy advocates for 35% affirmative action in favor of women to bridge the gender gap in political representation. Yet, this policy remains a hollow proclamation, gathering dust in the annals of unimplemented reforms. The chasm between policy and practice is a testament to the government’s insincerity and apathy toward women’s empowerment. In 2022, the National Assembly brazenly rejected five gender bills that sought to provide equal rights for women in citizenship, political representation, and economic opportunities. With a callous disregard for progress, lawmakers sent a chilling message: Nigerian women are not equal citizens. How can a country that claims to be the ‘Giant of Africa’ continue to treat half of its population as second-class citizens? How can a government claim to support gender equality while actively ensuring that women remain locked out of power, decision-making, and economic prosperity? This is a betrayal of the highest order.
Violence against women in Nigeria is an epidemic – one that the government refuses to address with the urgency it demands. Every day, women and girls suffer at the hands of rapists, domestic abusers, and kidnappers, while the state looks the other way. The 2014 abduction of the Chibok girls should have been a turning point, but a decade later, thousands of women and girls remain in captivity, enslaved by terrorists while their government moves on to other priorities. Even in their own homes, Nigerian women are not safe. Domestic violence laws are weak and inconsistently enforced, leaving countless women to endure abuse in silence. The government’s failure to protect women is not just negligence – it is complicity.
Despite being the backbone of Nigeria’s informal economy, women are continuously denied financial independence. Discriminatory banking and inheritance laws ensure that many Nigerian women cannot own land, access credit, or build businesses without the permission of their husbands or male relatives. What message does this send to the young girl in Maiduguri or Ibadan who dreams of becoming a leader? That her place is in the shadows? That she should accept oppression as her destiny? The government’s refusal to break these barriers is a betrayal of Nigeria’s daughters.
The marginalization of women in political spaces is not just a disservice to women; it is a crippling blow to national development. When half of the population is systematically excluded from decision-making processes, the resulting policies lack the diversity of thought and experience necessary for holistic progress. The absence of women’s perspectives perpetuates cycles of inequality, poverty, and social injustice. As Nigeria marks International Women’s Day, let it be clear: token gestures and empty declarations are not enough. Nigerian women do not need platitudes—they need action.
The government must among other things, enact and enforce laws that mandate gender parity in political parties’ candidate lists and within legislative bodies, including equal rights in citizenship, inheritance, and political participation. The government should also implement affirmative action by enforcing the national gender policy’s stipulation of 35% representation for women in all political appointments and elected positions. Also, economic barriers that hinder women’s participation in politics, such as lack of access to funding and economic dependence should be dismantled and replaced by policies that empower women; ensuring that they have equal access to land, credit, and business opportunities. Furthermore, the government should establish and enforce stringent laws against gender-based violence, particularly political violence targeted at women candidates and activists and ensure that rapists, abusers, and traffickers face the full force of the law. In addition, the government should prioritize the safe return of kidnapped women and girls, providing them with full rehabilitation and reintegration into society. Finally, the authorities should launch nationwide campaigns to challenge patriarchal norms and educate the populace on the importance of women’s participation in governance.
The time for excuses and complacency is over. Nigeria’s women are not asking for favors; they are demanding their inalienable rights. Nigeria cannot continue to celebrate women while simultaneously denying them their rights. The world is watching, history is recording, and Nigerian women are rising.
The government must shed its cloak of indifference and rise to the call of justice, equity, and true democracy. Anything less is a betrayal of our nation’s mothers, daughters, and sisters – a betrayal that history will neither forget nor forgive.
