Overcoming the Challenges of Women in Politics: Lesson for and from Nigeria

Abstract

In spite of the fact that women constitute over 50% of the registered voters in the country and are actively involved in political rallies and election campaigns, they are grossly underrepresented in elective and leadership positions in political parties and other sectors of the nation’s economy. The paper examines the historical antecedents of women in politics. It identifies women’s participation and contributions to Nigeria’s political and democratic process between 1999 and 2015 with a view to identifying the major challenges and possible means of overcoming the issues. Relying mainly on secondary sources of data, the paper engages archival review of existing gender policies and their roles in promoting women’s political participation or otherwise. The paper concludes that with greater awareness, enabling environment, better political commitment and policies, women’s political participation in Nigeria will improve markedly.