A new study has highlighted the urgent need for institutional support systems to strengthen women’s leadership in Nigeria’s legal profession.
The study titled “Barriers and Bridges: Women’s Advancement to Leadership in Nigeria’s Legal Profession”, sheds light on the challenges women face in rising to senior positions and calls for deliberate policies that encourage their growth.
Commissioned by Co-Impact with the Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC) as technical partner, the study was conducted by Director, Centre for Safeguarding /Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Lagos, Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, former FIDA President, Ms. Agbaje Amina Suzanna, and Lecturer in Governance and International Relations at Obafemi Awolowo University, Prof. Kehinde Olabode. The initiative, headquartered at University of Lagos (UNILAG), will collaborate with 12 law faculties across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones in its next phase.
The report emphasised the importance of supportive human resource policies, including the establishment of crèches, clear promotional pathways, and gender-friendly work environments that foster work-life balance. It also advocated for mentoring networks to prepare women for leadership roles.
Presenting the findings at a workshop themed “Advancing Women’s Rights and Breaking Barriers for an Inclusive Future for Law Faculties in Nigeria”, Dr. Akiyode-Afolabi noted that while women’s experiences in Nigeria’s legal profession mirror global trends, cultural and societal norms continue to hinder progress.
The study points to recurring obstacles such as sexual harassment, entrenched patriarchal perceptions of women’s capacity, and rigid professional structures that overlook women’s caregiving responsibilities. Despite women’s significant presence in the public sector, their representation in senior roles remains disproportionately low.
Statistics revealed the imbalance: in 2020, women made up just 32 percent of judicial officers in the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal. By early 2022, women accounted for 28 percent of Supreme Court justices, 27 percent of Court of Appeal judges, and 35 percent of Federal High Court judges figures that fall short of the 35 percent benchmark set by Nigeria’s National Gender Policy. Leadership within the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) also reflects this disparity, with only five of 128 branches headed by women as of 2023. In 2024, just 35 of 720 Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) were women, and only four of 37 attorneys-general were female. Since independence in 1960, Nigeria has elected only two female chief justices.
The imbalance extends to private practice and academia, where senior positions in law firms and faculties are largely dominated by men. Representation in the National Assembly is similarly low, with Nigeria ranked among the countries with the least female parliamentary presence by the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
At the workshop, stakeholders shared personal experiences and called for reforms to improve working conditions and opportunities for women.
Dean, Faculty of Law, UNILAG, Prof. Abiola Olaitan Sanni, described the programme as a response to systemic challenges in legal education, stressing the need to support young female lecturers to ensure equity in career advancement.
He praised the research team for pioneering a project of this scale in Africa, noting that the pilot programmes across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones could reshape the future of legal education.
Initiative Coach from Kenya, Wairu Kinyori-Gugu, added that the project could serve as a model for other African faculties. She emphasised the importance of reforming institutions to create a pipeline of women leaders in law, enabling them to influence legislation and policies that advance women’s rights.
