…says worsening political exclusion threatens democracy

Women rights advocates have raised concerns over what they described as worsening political exclusion of women in Nigeria, warning that the 2027 general elections could produce even lower female representation than the country recorded in 2023 unless urgent corrective measures are taken.

The groups, operating under the umbrella of the Voice of Women Empowerment Foundation (VoWE) and allied civil society organisations, urged political parties to adopt affirmative measures, including nominating women as deputy governorship candidates in all 36 states.

The call was made during a press conference and roundtable dialogue on the audit of political party primaries held virtually on Wednesday.

The coalition expressed concern over emerging trends from the ongoing primaries, alleging that many female aspirants who met constitutional requirements and actively participated in the electoral process were either pressured to withdraw, sidelined during screening exercises or edged out through last-minute political arrangements.

Speaking on behalf of the coalition, Co-founder and Executive Director of Voice of Women Empowerment Foundation, Mrs. Toun Okewale Sonaiya, described the development as a threat to democratic inclusion and a major setback for women’s political participation.

According to her, the country’s democratic credentials remain questionable when nearly half of its population continues to be excluded from political leadership.

She noted that women constitute about 49.5 per cent of Nigeria’s estimated 240 million population, yet occupy less than four per cent of seats in the National Assembly, while female representation in state legislatures remains below five per cent.

Sonaiya further lamented that Nigeria currently has no elected female governor, while 14 states have no female lawmakers in their Houses of Assembly.

“Nigeria ranks among the poorest-performing countries globally in women’s political representation despite being Africa’s largest democracy and economy. The gap between policy commitments and political realities can no longer be ignored,” she said.

To address the imbalance, the coalition called on political parties to ensure that every male governorship candidate is paired with a female running mate ahead of the 2027 elections.

The groups argued that such a measure would immediately increase women’s participation in executive governance while creating a stronger pathway for women to occupy higher political offices in the future.

They also demanded greater transparency from political parties regarding women’s participation in the ongoing nomination processes.

Specifically, the coalition asked governors and party leaders across the country to publish data showing the number of women who purchased nomination forms, participated in screening exercises, secured party tickets, withdrew from contests or were persuaded to step down.

The coalition further urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to intensify oversight of political parties and ensure adherence to constitutional principles of fairness, equity and non-discrimination.

In addition, the groups appealed to President Bola Tinubu to support the passage of the Special Seats Bill currently before the National Assembly, describing the proposed legislation as a necessary intervention to address historical gender imbalance in political representation.

“This is not about charity or favouritism. It is a democratic correction designed to address years of exclusion and create a more representative governance structure,” Sonaiya said.

She warned that continued exclusion of women from leadership positions could have wider implications for governance, democratic accountability and national development.

According to her, women’s participation should no longer be treated as a peripheral issue but as a critical component of democratic consolidation.

The coalition pledged to closely monitor developments ahead of the 2027 elections, document cases of exclusion and publicly track the performance of political parties on gender inclusion indicators.

Presenting findings from an audit of political party primaries, Executive Director of Invictus Africa, Mrs. Bukola Shonibare, said preliminary data revealed significant gender disparities among aspirants across major political parties.

She disclosed that only three political parties currently have female aspirant representation above 20 per cent.

According to the data, the Peoples Democratic Party recorded the highest proportion of female aspirants at 28.2 per cent, followed by the Young Progressives Party with 22.7 per cent and the Youth Party with 20 per cent.

Shonibare noted that despite producing the highest number of aspirants nationwide, the All Progressives Congress recorded only 209 female aspirants out of a total of 2,008 aspirants.

She also expressed concern about the outlook for women’s representation in the Senate, revealing that only three female senators have so far secured tickets to return to the upper legislative chamber.

“If all three are eventually elected, women will account for only about 2.7 per cent of Senate membership in the next electoral cycle, which would represent a significant democratic deficit,” she said.

The coalition maintained that unless deliberate action is taken by political parties, electoral institutions and policymakers, Nigeria risks falling further behind regional and global standards on women’s political inclusion.