Support is growing for the Reserved Seats for Women Bill currently before the Nigeria’s National Assembly, as civil society groups and human rights advocates intensify calls for its speedy passage.
The appeal was made on in Abuja at an advocacy and capacity-building forum focused on strengthening collaboration between women’s rights groups and male allies. The event was organised by the African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development, with support from the Ford Foundation and the Male Feminists Network.
The proposed legislation aims to significantly boost women’s representation by allocating additional seats exclusively for female candidates, 37 seats in the Senate, 37 in the House of Representatives, and three reserved seats in each of the 36 state Houses of Assembly.
Speaking to journalists, human rights advocate, Otive Igbuzor described the bill as a proven and effective strategy, noting that countries that have made progress in women’s political inclusion did so through constitutional and legislative guarantees. He urged lawmakers to seize the opportunity to make history by passing the bill.
Igbuzor also highlighted the broader structural challenges facing women in Nigeria, including deep-seated inequalities and gender-based violence, which he said are reinforced by entrenched patriarchal systems. He stressed that meaningful reform requires the active participation of men, not just women, in challenging harmful norms and power structures.
According to him, engaging men as allies has already begun to shift attitudes toward gender equality, reducing resistance to feminist advocacy and helping to address the root causes of discrimination and violence against women and girls.
Nigeria remains one of the lowest-ranking countries globally in terms of women’s participation in politics. Women currently occupy fewer than four per cent of seats in both chambers of the National Assembly, a figure that contrasts sharply with their share of the population. Past electoral reforms and affirmative action efforts have failed to produce meaningful change.
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