Patriarchal politics and women representation in governance in Nigeria, 1999-2023

Abstract

In some parts of Africa, discriminatory laws and policies restrict women's access to certain occupations and limit their property ownership rights. This limits women's political and economic participation, decreases their income-earning potential, and perpetuates gender inequality, hindering economic growth and poverty reduction. Nigeria as a post-colonial state adopted a democratic system based on non-gender discrimination in political participation, which was modelled after the British parliamentary democratic system. However, in Nigeria, the colonial legacy of marginalization of women in politics was intensified at independence in 1960 based on the patriarchal traditional norms of colonial Nigerian society of male dominance. This inequality is particularly problematic, as it contributes to a cycle of poverty and discrimination that disproportionately affects women and their economic status and well-being. Therefore, this paper intends to unravel how gender disproportionate representation in power structures leads to the marginalization of women in governance in Nigeria. The paper was anchored on structural-functional theory as its theoretical framework of analysis. The paper depended on the documentary method of data generation, using secondary sources. Content analysis was employed for the analysis of data generated from documents. This study found that gender disproportionate representation in power structures skewed in favour of the male gender accounted for the marginalization of women in governance in Nigeria. The recommendation here is that a system of gender quotas should be statutorily instituted for public service appointments, leading to a just and equitable society for all in Nigeria.