Why Nigerian Women Aren't Represented in Politics

Nigeria is Africa's most populous democracy but has among the lowest number of women in office in the world. Women make up about 49% of Nigeria's population. Their representation in government is a far cry from what' has been achieved in other countries on the continent, writes Sharon Adetutu Omotoso for The Conversation.

According to a report by Premium Times, only 5% of Nigeria's federal lawmakers are women, one of the lowest representation rates globally. Compared with the statistics of the parliamentary elections of 2015 and 2019, female representation in the 2023 polls is the worst, despite increased lobbying in the last three years for gender balance and more active female participation in politics.

In March 2022, Nigerian women suffered a backlash in their pursuit of gender equity. Five gender bills presented to the National Assembly were thrown out. The rejection of the bills showed that the assembly wasn't interested in gender parity in politics. It has 469 members - with only 21 of them women.

Omotoso highlighted three main reasons for the exclusion of women. Firstly, there's a lack of voter education. Secondly, women are disproportionately excluded from policy-making domains because more live in poverty than men. Thirdly, there is more moral scrutiny of women than men.

Nigerians will pick a candidate to replace President Muhammadu Buhari on February 25, 2023. But only one of the 18 candidates is female - Ojei Chichi of the Allied People's Movement (APM). In the governorship races, there is only one woman across the 36 states - the APC's Aisha Binani in Adamawa state.

Civil society leaders and other experts say women's political participation in Nigeria is below global standards.