Creating boardrooms where female voices count
As the global community looks forward to this year’s International Women’s Day ( IWD), GLORIA NWAFOR examines the commitment to creating a genderbalanced workplace and an Africa where women’s contributions are valued and mainstreamed into decision- making
WHILE Africa boasts of a high female labour force participation rate, some barriers prevent women from attaining positions of influence in the corporate world. The degree to which women can obtain managerial positions varies widely by African country but is well below 50 per cent for most countries.
According to 2023 data by the International Labour Organisation ( ILO), while African countries such as Togo hold the highest ( 70 per cent) proportion of women in managerial positions, Nigeria scores second with 64 per cent, followed by Botswana ( 59 per cent) and lowest in Algeria ( eight per cent), where less than one in 10 such positions are held by a woman.
However, national discourse has been framed within patriarchal boundaries, while women’s practical involvement was mainly centered on motherhood responsibilities and safeguarding the family.
For the last three decades, women have repeatedly called for the “full and effective implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action as essential to achieving the internationally agreed development goals.” To date, four world conferences on women organised by the United Nations have been held – Mexico ( 1975), Copenhagen ( 1980), Nairobi ( 1985), and Beijing ( 1995). Since the Beijing Conference in 1995, the United Nations ( U. N.) General Assembly and the Commission on the Status of Women have held several sessions to review the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action ( 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, and 2020).
On the policy front, African women have advocated and successfully lobbied for the adoption and ratification of instruments such as the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa ( Maputo Protocol), the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security and the International Conference on Population Development
Programme of Action among others.
What is worth celebrating, however, according to many women, is the development of strong women leadership and feminist platforms across the continent in the past four decades. They argued that the emergence and growth of the number of women leaders in Africa – particularly successes in political representation and monumental policy achievements – has sustained momentum.
They maintained that African women leaders have played a key role in challenging gender inequalities by advocating for better policy interventions to arrest the intersecting forms of discrimination women face. According to them, African women have used constitutionalism, the rule of law, human rights, and justice and freedom narratives reminiscent of Africa’s anticolonial struggles as premises for combating the struggles enabled by international, continental, regional, and national legal frameworks. Regional Director, the UN Women East and Southern Africa Regional Office, Maxime Houinato, said women’s struggle for justice, equal human rights and dignity has straddled ideological divides and various epistemological lenses, including the Pan- Africanist, nationalist, anti- imperial, left- wing, liberal and feminist traditions. Also, she said women’s challenges persist and are actively fought in various settings, in institutions, boardrooms, slums and villages and in virtual spaces using various tools, tactics and strategies.
She noted that the obstacles are multifaceted: occurring at the local, continental and global levels as well as spanning the environmental, social, political, economic and technological.
In Nigeria, women consistently held pivotal roles in leadership and peace processes, addressing a diverse array of challenges and concerns impacting the welfare of their communities.
Regrettably, despite their important contributions to socioeconomic development, women suffer from various constraints, which inhibit them from fully realising their potential for development.
Undoubtedly, Nigeria has enormous unexploited potential, especially the capabilities of women whose productivity is greatly hampered by widespread inequality, especially in education.
With unbroken 25 years in democratic governance, the time for women to participate more actively in politics to promote national development is now. A report from the Mckinsey Global Institute, says Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product ( GDP) could grow by 23 per cent by 2025, if women participate more in the economy to the same extent as men, as well as how advancing women’s equality can add $ 12 trillion to global growth. Accordingly, the need to galvanise more active participation of women to fully achieve these goals was further deliberated. Indeed, the numerical strength of Nigerian women is an untapped resource, which is necessary for the revolution of a new economy, and the much- needed good governance that would accelerate social and political development.
Women represent a tool for positive change depending on the extent to which they are competent for national development.
Their involvement showcased their distinct perspectives and active contributions toward the advancement of women’s roles in leadership positions, peace processes, economic growth, poverty eradication, prosperity and unity and challenged the notion that women were solely passive victims.
This pattern endures today, as they continue to strategically involve themselves in addressing a wide range of challenges and societal issues including the economy, peace, governance, environment and political leadership. Assistant Professor of Economics, Barnard College, Columbia University, Belinda Archibong, said women cannot take their seats at decision- making tables if they are absent in the labour markets, fail to benefit equally from technological advancements, lack access to health care and are under constant threat of gender- based violence. Stating that there was still a lot of work required as far as the struggle for gender equality in Africa was concerned regarding the role of women leaders.
According to the don, there is a need to reflect critically on the role of women leaders in Africa in accelerating progress toward gender equality, peace, positioning, and sustainability, given the new threats and challenges arising from the volatile, unpredictable, and ambiguous global and continental political economy of development governance.
“For the gains made to be put on track, we need women to continue to demand and take an active role in advocating for the increase of female representation in leadership and political spheres from the village to the parliamentary level while fostering discussion within public and political bodies about women’s leadership and establishing benchmarks to assess the influence and impact of women’s participation in leadership and ensure accountability,” she said.
Looking ahead to achieving gender equality, Archibong said there was a need for collaborative efforts, including partnerships with governments, civil society organisations and international actors, which would be crucial for sustaining progress and achieving gender equality.
She said addressing systemic barriers, promoting inclusive policies, and investing in women’s education, health and economic empowerment would be vital steps toward a more equitable Africa
At the Women Directors’ Conference, Senior Vice Chairman, Standard Chartered Bank Group, Bola Adesola, argued that with about 96.6 million women in Nigeria, participation of women in key decision- making areas across all sectors of the economy is abysmally low.
Adesola said for national development to take place, the participation and involvement of women could no longer be ignored. However, for women to participate actively in national development, she noted that certain obstacles must be removed, and an enabling environment that empowers women to rise is equally essential.
For Nigeria to achieve higher female representation across the board, she noted that there is a need for Nigerian women to empower themselves to participate actively in governance and leadership in the three tiers of government.
On some of the issues of why female participation is low in all aspects of the Nigerian economy, a former President of the Chartered Institute of Directors, Chris Okunowo said: “I believe that there are reasons to believe that the various Nigerian governments over the years have been reluctant to properly implement the laws to improve gender equality in politics, despite a constitutional support for it.
“And I dare say that the muchdesired sustainable economic development of Nigeria is only possible if it is interlinked with the progress of her women.
“The Nigerian private sector can improve their bottom line if they invest more strategically in women leadership. Talent is critical to staying competitive, but despite the growing number of qualified women in the workforce in all sectors, the female talent pool continues to remain underutilised. Although this is a worldwide phenomenon, it appears to be more prevalent in Nigeria.”
Indeed, the numerical strength of Nigerian women is an untapped resource, which is necessary for the revolution of a new economy, and the much- needed good governance that would accelerate social and political development.