UN Women pushes special seats bill to boost female representation in Nigerian politics

The United Nations (UN) Women has intensified its advocacy for the Special Seats for Women Bill, which seeks to reserve specific legislative seats for women in the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly.

These efforts are geared towards amplifying women’s voices in politics and ensuring their representation in decision-making processes as the world recently marked International Women’s Day.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, Beatrice Eyong, the representative of UN Women in Nigeria, said the country must take deliberate steps to close the gender gap in politics and decision-making.

According to her, the proposed legislation, which seeks to reserve seats for women in the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly, could play a crucial role in correcting the imbalance that has kept women largely underrepresented in governance.

“Gender equality is fundamentally a matter of power and in Nigeria, that power gap remains stuck. Women hold just 3.9 percent of parliamentary seats, one of the lowest rates globally, and this severely limits inclusive decision-making and national progress,” Eyong said.

She stressed that progress on gender equality requires concrete action and strong political commitment from government and other stakeholders.

“Neither rights nor can justice be realized without action. Action backed by resources, political will, and sustained partnerships,” she added.

Eyong noted that UN Women and its partners are working across sectors to advocate the passage of the Special Seats for Women Bill, which she described as a critical step towards ensuring that women have a meaningful role in shaping national policies.

“I’d like to still come back to this Special Seats for Women Bill, which is and remains a dream for all Nigerian women and girls, and also men who support, who understand and support gender equality and women’s empowerment,” she said.

She expressed disappointment that the legislation has not yet been passed, noting that many advocates had hoped Nigeria would have made more progress by now.

“We were hoping that by now it would have been passed and we would have already known that at least Nigeria is actually moving to that position of the giant that Nigeria is,” she said.

Eyong also rejected suggestions that Nigeria lacks qualified women capable of holding public office.

“And there is no excuse to say where are the women. Nigeria has the brightest, competent women with expertise on the continent,” she said.

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She added that Nigerian women are already demonstrating leadership and expertise on the global stage.

Given these achievements, she questioned why more women are not given opportunities to serve in leadership roles within the country.

Access to finance

Beyond political participation, Ayong said efforts are also underway to improve economic opportunities for women, particularly entrepreneurs who often face barriers in accessing finance.

“Credit lines are just for women’s activities to support women entrepreneurs. By June, we are going to start exclusively a program just for access to finance. It’s financed by the African Development Bank. For that particular program, we will be looking for women who need financing to actually have access to finance. So it’s a very important work that we are doing,” she said.

She further disclosed that UN Women is supporting the Ministry of Women Affairs to strengthen mechanisms that promote accountability and protect women and girls.

“We are also supporting the Ministry of Women Affairs to expand and strengthen the National Sexual Offender Database, an essential tool for accountability that prevents perpetrators from moving across states undetected,” she said.

Eyong also called on the media to play a more active role in promoting gender equality and highlighting issues affecting women and girls, emphasising that responsible reporting can help ensure that women’s voices are heard and their concerns remain part of national discourse.

“As we commemorate the International Women’s Day today, we call on the media to use its powerful platform to shape narratives that advance women’s rights, expose injustice, and hold institutions accountable,” she said.

“The media has a critical role in amplifying survivors’ voices, promoting women’s leadership, and ensuring the national conversation keeps women and girls at the center of public action by telling the full story accurately, responsibly, and consistently,” she added.

Eyong concluded that stronger collaboration between government, civil society, the private sector and development partners will be essential to dismantle gender barriers and ensure that women and girls are fully included in Nigeria’s development.

“The media can help turn rights, justice, and action into lived realities for every woman and girl in Nigeria,” she said.

Ngozi Ekugo

Ngozi Ekugo is a Senior Correspondent at BusinessDay. She holds a Masters in management from the University of Lagos, an undergraduate from University of Lagos, and is in an alumni of Queen's College. Shes currently an associate member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM). She has a brief experience at Goldman sachs, London in its Human Capital Management division. She is interested in human capital development and is leveraging her varied experience across sectors to report labour and global mobility trends for stakeholders to make informed decisions.