In Nigeria and Africa at large, the rise of women excelling and shattering ceilings in the sports industry has become a celebrated norm. This shift is marked by the achievements of standout athletes like Asisat Oshoala and Tobi Amusan, whose recent performances continue to inspire. Beyond the field, women in executive roles are reshaping the sports landscape with visionary leadership and innovative policies.

Gbemisola Abudu, the Vice President of NBA Africa & NBA Nigeria Country Head is at the forefront of the development of basketball in Africa. Since the NBA’s entry into the Nigerian market in 2022, Abudu, an American-born Nigerian entrepreneur and philanthropist with a passion for basketball ignited by Kobe Bryant’s prowess in 1996 has been pivotal in narrowing the divide between Africa and the NBA. Her initiatives, ranging from cross-cultural events that spotlight Nigeria and Africa to enhancing basketball infrastructure, underline her commitment to the sport’s growth.

In an exclusive interview with SWA Sports, Gbemisola Abudu shares her journey as a Nigerian woman pioneering in African sports, navigating challenges with resilience and determination, and laying the foundation for the future of African women in sports leadership.

What inspired you to pursue a career in sports and why basketball?
I have a strong passion for the game. I’ve followed it religiously and been a fan since I was 13 years old. I associate sports in general to this perfect analogy I’ve learnt about life: in order for you to be great at anything you need hard work. I deeply identify with that. There is a bible verse that goes “train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. My relationship with basketball is a personification of that verse.

How did you overcome any initial barriers you faced as a female executive in a male-dominated industry?
I don’t believe anyone fully overcomes that. You learn to deal with it and focus on the task at hand and doing it great. The work begins with us dispelling the narrative about female leadership. This year, we are speaking about “inspiring inclusion,” but within our systems, it doesn’t always reflect. The mindset has to shift from both men and women, unlearning the bias that works against women. We all grow up in a school of thought that defines a woman and what she can and cannot do. Unfortunately, this sometimes creates more barriers than intended. We need to see adversity as a tool for development and sometimes a distraction. We focus on the work that needs to get done and ignore the noise.

What do you believe is your role in shaping the representation of women in sports business?
My role is to demonstrate excellence at the highest level and show that opportunity that exists. This sometimes means working three times as hard as the next person to ensure that I achieve the type of results I desire. I fundamentally believe that it’s my responsibility to shift the needle for the next generation just like the women before me shifted the needle for me and allowed me to benefit from their hard work and efforts.

What steps do you believe should be taken to increase the number of capable African women in leadership positions within sports organizations?
Intentionality is everything. Globally, we see so much gender-washing and the real work to make the workplace and society inclusive for women is not being done. That intentionality could be in the form of programs that addresses the gaps in the workplace and levels the playing field for capable women within organizations to get the same opportunities as their male counterparts. Women are not asking for preferential treatment, they just want equal opportunity.

How do you envision the contribution of women in sports development in Nigeria, and what role do you hope to play in shaping it?
Sports is such an undervalued industry in Nigeria yet it holds the biggest potential. We don’t include sports in conversations of economic growth whereas developed countries are seeing rising GDPs and job creation as a result . We must recognise what sports can do for us and ask the right questions about progressive steps forward. Sports development is a gender neutral conversation and I just want to see more capable and dynamic professionals coming together as visionaries to develop this
industry.

What are some of the ongoing challenges that African women face in advancing their careers in sports business, and what strategies can be employed to address these challenges?
I will borrow the words of my Aunt, the prolific Mo Abudu, who has said “as an African woman, you have three things working against you: you are a woman, you’re African and you’re black”. Unfortunately, these things have negative biases attached to them which can work against women. However, we must not let them be a handicap to us. For me, it pushes me to focus on doing the job better than anyone and strive to deliver excellence at all times. In addition, I believe in building relationships with both men and women who are of different ages and experiences that can add value to my growth. Nobody can achieve greatness on their own. To have people who believe in you and can support you in whatever capacity is priceless. I implore women to never underestimate themselves because there will be biases.

What role can male allies and industry leaders play in championing gender equality and creating more inclusive workplaces within sports organizations?
Again, it’s unlearning the unconscious biases we have grown up with about women. Showing up as an ally and sponsor were you can speak for a woman when she can’t for herself. We should make it a point to look at things through the lens of gender mainstreaming to ensure that policies and the workplace are not inherently designed against women. For example, I consulted for an organization many years ago that
struggled to get women to participate in a development program. The first question was the need to understand why. During research, we realized that the program was held after 7:00 pm, which was a time when female employees of this organization were attending to personal lives and taking care of the home. This automatically disqualified because they didn’t have the luxury of taking a development program during that time.

Once the organization changed to time, they found that women’s participation increased. This is why gender mainstreaming is important.

Research shows that by the age of 17, 50% of girls stop playing basketball. Diving deeper into this data, you will find that most outdoor basketball courts don’t have changing rooms. Therefore, the girls don’t have a place to change in their gears to play. There are other factors but that was one that could easily be addressed to impact participation. It goes back to what I said earlier, being intentional in truly creating an inclusive environment and levelled playing field for women in all aspects of work and
society.

I will end by saying, we collectively as a society need to ask whether we rate contributing to inclusion or are we the barrier to it?
To answer this question, we need to reflect and understand the unconscious biases we might have that prevent us from being a solution.