The Women in Leadership Dinner at The Peak Performer Festival (TPP Fest) 2025 has set a firm tone for Nigeria’s leadership landscape, with a unified call for women to step out of the shadows and show up with authority, clarity and ambition.
The evening, which doubled as the official launch of the founder and convener of TPP Africa, Dr. Abiola Salami’s new book, No More Shrinking, convened voices shaping public service, enterprise and the future of gender inclusion.
Speaking at the event with the theme – How Women Can Unleash Untapped Creativity and Market Growth with 21st Century Intelligence, keynote speaker, First Lady of Kwara State, Olufolake AbdulRazaq, said No More Shrinking is a strategic blueprint for dismantling long-standing stereotypes that mute women’s advancement. “Many times, women hold back and say they’re not sure, they need more information. This book is very important for all of us. There will always be stereotypes that shrink women, even when they are inaccurate. It is important that we refuse to shrink.”
While noting on the need to elevate women’s leadership and reinforce global evidence that nations progress faster when women lead, she said, “when women innovate, industries expand. When women lead, organisations become more ethical, more productive and more sustainable.”
Highlighting Kwara State’s strides in gender inclusion from a 35 percent gender inclusion law to moments of female-majority leadership in the State cabinet, she stressed that representation must be normalised, not celebrated as an exception. “If you didn’t deserve the position, you wouldn’t be there. Women belong in boardrooms, labs, classrooms, markets and negotiating tables.”
On a panel session led by the author and convener, Dr. Salami, Founder of GAIA Africa, Olatowun Candide-Johnson, and Human Resources Director at the Lagos Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), Mrs. Arinola Kola-Daisi stressed on the need that Nigerian women can no longer afford to shrink in a world where their innovation and leadership remain critical to national development.
For Dr. Salami, the issue is not a lack of brilliance but a culture of self-minimisation. “Too many women dilute their own value because they fear being misunderstood or ignored. But the future belongs to those who show up fully with clarity, courage and intelligence.”
Candide-Johnson drew attention to the dynamics that silence women in decision-making spaces. “Women speak and get ignored. A man repeats it and suddenly he is a genius. Your network is your net worth. When people don’t see you, they don’t think about you. I had to rebuild my network from scratch after leaving corporate life and it changed everything.”
She challenged women to adopt a forward-leaning posture. “Women must take calculated risks. If we don’t, we stay small. If you fail, you learn, but growth requires stepping out.”
From the public sector lens, Kola-Daisi, said women must know when to play the emotional intelligence and presence card if they have to navigate leadership. “You don’t need to shout to command respect. Women have intuition, use it. Read the room. Know when to be firm and when to step back.”
Recalling her early years in the workplace, she said, “People will test your boundaries, especially when you rise early. Stand your ground respectfully. Presence is power. Build your capacity. Invest in yourself. The more you grow internally, the more you can deliver externally.”
Book reviewer and media personality, Morayo Brown, added a reflective layer to the night’s message, noting that No More Shrinking captures the silent load women carry daily. “Women shrink themselves because society demands perfection at every turn. We over-plan our lives, and when outcomes don’t align with expectations, we spiral into self-judgment. This book confronts that tendency head-on.
“Stop letting societal expectations dictate your pace, your worth, or your journey. Compete only with the woman you were yesterday. Honour your roles whether as wife, mother, professional, or caregiver but remember they do not define the totality of your identity.”
