According to the group, the allocation in the 2024 proposed budget for WEE is the lowest since 2019.
An analysis of the 2024 proposed budget has revealed that less than one per cent of the N27.5 trillion total budget is dedicated to Women's Economic Empowerment (WEE) programmes.
According to a women's group under the Partnerships for Advancing Women in Economic Development (PAWED), the analysis of the 2024 budget shows a decrease of 82 per cent when compared to N78 billion allocated to WEE in 2023.
The group shared the results of its review at a press conference on Wednesday, noting that the 2024 budget has only 107 proposed WEE projects compared to 442 projects in 2023.
Renewed Hope Agenda
Citing the government's commitment to WEE under its renewed Hope agenda, the women's group described the 2024 allocation for WEE as "grossly inadequate", adding that it is the lowest budget for WEE since 2019.
Speaking at the press conference, the National President, NECA's Network of Entrepreneurial Women, Funmilayo Arowoogun, said the review was extended to include economic empowerment lines in the budget targeting combined beneficiary groups of women, youth and others.
Mrs Arowoogun said the 2024 budget captured 107 WEE projects for women, youth and others.
"Even when the N12.57 billion allocation to the WEE lines targeting women, youth and others is added to the ₦12.59 allocation for women-only WEE projects, the 2024 allocation for WEE remains the lowest since 2019," she said.
"Less than one per cent of the 2024 budgetary capital allocation is dedicated to WEE. In 2023, almost two per cent of the annual capital budget was allocated to WEE."
Mrs Arowoogun said the group also recognised the nation's tight fiscal space, "we believe that reduced funding for WEE will impact negatively on the achievement of government's WEE targets."
The group appealed to the government to consider an upward, more gender-disaggregated and beneficiary-specific review of the 2024 budget allocation for WEE "so that the laudable commitments of the Renewed Hope Agenda can be achieved."
"Together, we can work towards a more inclusive and economically empowered Nigeria."
Ministry of Women Affairs
However, in the 2024 budget, the Ministry of Women Affairs under Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye proposed over N10 billion for the 2024 fiscal year, and the sum covers overhead, personnel and capital projects.
A breakdown of the allocation shows that N1.3 billion would be spent on personnel costs, N565.5 million on overhead costs and N6.7 billion on capital expenditure.While N8.6 billion was earmarked for the Ministry, the National Centre for Women Development will get N1.4 billion for women's empowerment as contained in the proposed budget.
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Some of these programmes are new projects initiated by the Ministry, while others are ongoing projects.
About PAWED
PAWED is a group supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's grant to the Development Research and Project Centre (dRPC).
Members of the group include the Association of Women Entrepreneurs (AWITA), the National Association of Women Entrepreneurs (NAWE), and the National Council for Women Societies (NCWS).
About WEE
WEE is described as a transformative process by which women and girls go from having limited power, voice, and choice at home and in the economy to having the skills, resources, and opportunities needed to access and compete equitably in markets and the agency to control and benefit from economic gains.
dRPC said the analysis is based on a detailed review of the capital component of the 2024 proposed budget.
It said the data were analysed using quantitative methods and approaches including comparative and trend analyses.
