By Christy Anyanwu
As the world marks International Women’s Day (IWD) today, with the theme
“Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress”, some leading lights in academia, industry and gender advocacy, among others, have charted a course for government, organisations and families towards advancing the world’s progress by empowering women.
Nkiruka Ifekwem, Ph.D, associate professor/public analyst and gender expert
It is quite disheartening that, despite the efforts of women and their contributions to development, they still remain under-represented in politics, governance and at the top leadership of large corporate organisations. The reason for this is that we have cultural barriers that hinder women, hostile work environments and subtle biases like stereotypes and even intra-gender animosity where women fight fellow women. For a woman to be in a leadership position, she works twice as much as her counterpart who is a man. Women are always challenged by the glass ceiling, whereas men always enjoy the glass escalator.
In the political scene, there needs to be a level playing ground where women and men have equal opportunity. Money politics should be discarded, as women do not have so much money for politics. Again, women are peaceful and cannot cope with the violence associated with politics in this part of the world. To get to their rightful position in political leadership, women should encourage one another. Wealthy women should support the younger ones to take up political positions. We should also have godmothers, not only godfathers. Women should be more involved in party politics. A situation where a woman is appointed as ‘Women Leader’ in political parties should be discouraged as there is no ‘Men Leader.’ Nothing stops a woman from being chairman or Secretary of a political party. More women should be in the mainstream of party structures, as that is where important political decisions are taken.
The renewed commitment this year’s theme would have on women is that awareness is created through various programmes organised by different organisations and institutions to mark the day, and men are encouraged to give women the chance to unlock the potential the Almighty God invested in them. That will accelerate progress in the society
Dr. (Mrs.) Nkem Okoro, educationist and quality assurance officer (formerly Federal Inspector of Schools), retired Deputy Director, Federal Ministry of Education
This IWD 2024 theme, Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress, is a well-thought-out theme and a wake-up call for women to learn the challenges women face and work towards solutions for those problems. Nigeria’s surging inflation, devalued currency, eroded incomes, food scarcity and widespread hunger have worsened gender inequality and other issues facing women, including poor health and low access to social services (hospitals, schools, education, etc.).
Gender inequality issues are robbing women of economic power, authority and influence in social and political spheres. Patriarchal cultural societies, especially in developing countries where women are discriminated upon,p continue to hinder women’s progress.
A focus on this year’s theme will enhance the economic power of women more than anything else. Women with the means will start to do the things they want to do, rather than expecting and depending on men. They will break barriers of gender inequality in the workplace, in earnings, social and political participation and women being able to make their own decisions.
It is hoped that this theme will sensitize and create awareness on issues hindering women and how to mitigate them. Investing in women will indeed accelerate progress in every sphere of life and societal transformation worldwide. Women in turn will positively contribute to their families, children, husbands, etc.
Today’s women still have areas that need enhancement even though women have continued to mitigate some obstacles in this contemporary time.
As International Women’s Day is about celebrating women’s achievements, championing women’s demands for human rights, addressing gender equality issues and proffering ways to mitigate them, including creating awareness and advocacy for women, this year’s theme will trigger efforts that foster the progress of today’s women through highlighting and recounting women’s past achievements which will heighten inspiration in women to conquer more grounds and also sustain them.
Discussing the theme will bring to the fore the vast areas on human rights and gender equality issues to address in the lives of today’s women such as discrimination against them in economic development, land and asset ownership, disempowerment in education, power, authority and influence, politics and top leadership positions. At the current rate of investments, it is stated that more than 340 million women and girls will still live in extreme poverty by 2030 and an additional $360 billion needed per year for developing countries to address gender equality under the Sustainable Development Goals (UN WOMEN, Five Things to Accelerate Women’s Economic Empowerment, 2024).
It will also make women renew their commitment to creating more vigorous awareness of their plight on gender equality issues and discrimination. Women themselves should hijack this opportunity to advocate and educate on issues that concern them.
Today, there are more work opportunities for men who also earn more than women, as women are paid 80 cents for every dollar earned by men. Women need investment in their time management in terms of time spent on unpaid domestic care work and low-income jobs as they spend three times more time on unpaid and unappreciated informal work.
The monetary value of women’s unpaid care work globally is at $10.8 trillion annually, three times the size of the world tech industry. It is estimated that 60% of women employed globally are in the informal category of work. There should, therefore, be shared responsibility within the household for everyone to join in carrying the load or burden of care work. There is a need to increase women’s participation in sectors where they are currently under-represented, especially in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. This will create gender balance in the workplace, contribute to determining the true cost of care work and make it possible for women to generate income in the formal labour market.
Investment in financial resources to meet women’s basic needs and start or grow their businesses, micro, small and medium enterprises, will help to address underfunding, which stands globally at $1.7 trillion. This will increase their income and accelerate progress. Women need money to purchase computers, smartphones, other gadgets and internet access for information on getting jobs, starting and managing a business, and in keeping up with emergent technologies.
A few women own or have access to land despite the fact that most women, especially rural women, engage solely in agricultural activities as farmers. It is important to ensure that women have equal rights to access, own and use resources. The recent ruling by the Supreme Court, the highest court in Nigeria, for the female child’s right to inherit properties of her father in the southeastern part of Nigeria should be applauded and implemented. It is important to note that women’s economic progress improves their wellbeing, reduces gender-based violence and increases political and social participation and leadership.
Security and protection are part of the issues faced by women who are more vulnerable to conflicts, poverty, lack of social protection, violation of their economic participation, gender violence and food insecurity. All stakeholders should be challenged to invest in security, which is pivotal to the health and economic progress of women.
Human rights violations, such as unjust patriarchal economic systems, cultural and social discriminatory norms result in gender inequality, which stands in the way of women’s access to information, networks, jobs and assets. Globally, women have only 77% of legal rights enjoyed by men. Listed below are some suggested solutions to women’s rights issues that will achieve great benefits for today’s woman:
a. Adoption of laws and policies that support women rights
b. Repeal or reject discriminatory laws and legal frameworks
c. Protect and support human rights defenders
d. Hold accountable and punish human abusers
e. Documentation of human rights abuses and abusers
f. Sexual abusers report and registration
g. Encourage advocacy programmes
h. Ensure that women’s voices are amplified in all aspects of decision making
i. Invest in women by providing social services and programs that promote their wellbeing by combating extreme poverty, poor health care and hunger.
The theme for this year’s IWD will encourage visitation of previous initiatives, e.g.
• Africa Health Initiatives for women
• Meet up with the $360 billion annual deficit in gender equality measures of 2030
• Women’s leadership initiatives
• Review maternal mortality initiatives
• Review and enforce priority funding for women organizations
All stakeholders, people, government and other authorities will be confronted and challenged to fulfil their commitments to the upliftment of women e.g. implement gender responsive measures e.g. 35% inclusion of women in Nigerian politics and leadership positions.
Investment in women will indeed accelerate progress in every sphere of women’s lives and promote societal transformation. Women in turn will positively contribute to their families, children and communities as nurturers and nation-builders.