INEC Challenges Parties to Take Action on Women’s Representation in Politics

The Independent National Electoral Commission has called on political parties to move beyond rhetoric and take concrete, measurable steps to strengthen women’s participation and representation in Nigeria’s political process ahead of the 2027 General Elections.

The commission made the call on Wednesday during an engagement with political parties on strengthening women’s political participation ahead of the 2027 elections, held in Abuja.

The engagement brought together political party leaders, development partners, women’s organisations, civil society groups and other election stakeholders to develop practical strategies for increasing women’s representation in elective offices.

In a welcome address delivered on behalf of the Secretary to the Commission, Dr Rose Anthony-Orianran, the Director of INEC’s Gender and Inclusivity Department, Mrs Lakunuya Dorothy Bello, said that although women continued to participate actively as voters, their representation as candidates and elected officials remained far below expectations.

Bello noted that only 1,556 of the 15,331 candidates, representing 10.2 per cent, who contested the 2023 General Election were women.

She added that only three women were elected to the Senate, while 16 secured seats in the House of Representatives.

According to her, achieving meaningful inclusion requires collective action by political parties, electoral stakeholders and development partners.

She urged participants to use the engagement to identify practical solutions to barriers limiting women’s political participation and strengthen collaboration ahead of the 2027 elections.

Declaring the engagement open on behalf of the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, National Commissioner, Prof. Rhoda Habor Gumus, reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to promoting inclusive democracy.

Gumus, who conveyed the INEC chairman’s apology for his absence due to another national assignment, said women’s strong participation in the electoral process had yet to translate into electoral success.

She noted that women accounted for 47.5 per cent of registered voters in the 2023 General Election and constituted the majority of registrants during the final phase of the recently concluded Continuous Voter Registration exercise.

“Despite this impressive participation, women remain grossly underrepresented in elective offices,” she said.

Gumus challenged political parties to deliberately create an enabling environment for female aspirants and candidates by providing equal access to party structures, campaign funding, media visibility, logistics, mentoring, security, fundraising networks and grassroots mobilisation.

She stressed that increasing women’s political representation would require deliberate action rather than mere commitments and declarations by political stakeholders.

The engagement comes amid renewed calls for political parties and other stakeholders to address structural and financial barriers that have continued to limit women’s participation in Nigeria’s electoral process.