• Friday, March 29, 2024
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BusinessDay

Lafarge, NB, Stanbic lead in women’s representation on boards

Companies with women on their boards

Lafarge Africa Plc, Nigerian Breweries Plc and Stanbic IBTC have been ranked as the top three listed companies with board positions held by women.

The three companies each have 45.5 percent female board representation, according to the 2022 PWR NGX Top 20 Gender Diversity Scorecard.

The scorecard measures female representation on the boards of the 20 largest companies by market capitalisation listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).

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PWR Advisory, a leadership, diversity and inclusion advisory and advocacy firm operating across Africa, assists corporate organisations maximise the benefits of diversity and inclusion to increase performance and profitability by providing the platform for career women to develop leadership capacity and raise their visibility and representation in the marketplace.

The scorecard, which is in its third year since the inaugural edition back in 2020, shows that 27.9 percent of board seats in the NGX top 20 companies are held by women, up from 23.4 percent last year.

It shows that 50 percent of the top 20 companies have at least 30 percent female representation on their boards, up from 25 percent last year.

“In joint 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 on the scorecard are Lafarge Africa Plc, Nigerian Breweries and Stanbic IBTC – all with 45.5% female board representation. Kudos to Lafarge and Stanbic IBTC for maintaining their 3-star ratings from last year. Kudos also to Nigerian Breweries who have improved significantly from 37.5 percent last year,” Ivana Osagie, founder of PWR Advisory, said.

In second place is Guinness Nigeria at 36.4 percent. Guinness, which is chaired by Omobola Johnson, is a new entrant on the list and is the only company on it with a female board chair.

After Guinness are Access Holding Plc at 33.3 percent, Guaranty Trust Holdings Company Plc at 33.3 percent, Transnational Corporation Plc at 33.3 percent, the United Bank for Africa Plc at 31.3 percent, Airtel Africa Plc at 30.8 percent and Seplat Energy Plc also at 30.8 percent.

Other companies on the top 20 list are Ecobank Transnational Incorporated at 28.6 percent, Dangote Cement Plc at 26.7 percent, Dangote Sugar Refinery` Plc at 25.0 percent, Nestle Nigeria Plc at 22.2 percent, Presco Plc at 20 percent, MTN Nigeria Communications Plc at 18.8 percent, Zenith Bank Plc at 17.6 percent, Okomu Oil Palm Plc at 16.7 percent, BUA Cement Plc at 12.5 percent and FBN Holdings Plc at 10 percent.

For the 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬, one of the 20 largest listed companies (Transcorp Group) is led by Owen Omogiafo, a 𝐟𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐂𝐄𝐎.

“Again this year, there is a slight improvement in the percentage of female directors on the listed boards compared to last year. It appears companies are slowly starting to appreciate the dividends of board gender diversity. That is much-needed good news for everyone,” Osagie said.

According to her, the world appears to be in a state of flux, and gobal economies are witnessing major upheaval and volatility, while businesses continue to grapple with supply chain disruptions, high energy and input prices and more.

She said: “Locally, insecurity, political turf wars and mass emigration of valuable, young talent are additional challenges. How might boards approach this unfolding and uncertain, new world and still push for growth? There is a strong need to collaborate, pool collective expertise and diverse perspectives, and to work together to find innovative, new solutions.

“It cannot be business as usual. Boards which value curiosity, openness, are willing to learn, and to intentionally drive an inclusive culture, are more likely to win the battle. It’s important to count the numbers round the table, but now more than ever before, is the time to make those numbers count.”

Table showing women representation on board