Empowering women - A case for change

Last?week?Thursday, I had the unique privilege of sharing my perspective on the role of women in nation-building during the Nigeria Leadership Series (NLS) organised by the African Leadership Group (ALG), massive thanks to Ituah ighodalo and team for the opportunity and Victor Ukwat for the connection.

The webinar?was attended?by great minds cutting across geographies, cultures, and sectors. All?with an infectious patriotic desire to go beyond talk and stimulate multi-generational action toward a better Nation.?

The conversation on gender roles, gender diversity, education of the girl child, and opportunities for women across segments and sectors continues to be at the forefront of most discourse. Specifically, SDG 5 focuses on the achievement of gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls.? With an all-encompassing framework to address the key issues that impact women such as education, eliminating gender-based violence, abolishing unfair treatment, stopping unfair wages, addressing the imbalance in rights to legitimate enterprise and asset ownership etc.

At the global, regional, national, and enterprise levels, we have no shortage of ideas or discussions to promote gender parity. The real question is: How much progress have we made? Are we where we should be? What has changed? And why are we not making as much progress as we should? I leave you to contemplate the answers to these important questions.

In the immediate, we focus on the perspectives that?were shared?during the webinar?which?touched on what we may be missing or things we need to do differently,?and?I’d attempt to articulate these rich insights:?

1. The conversation on gender equality stems back to certain beliefs, particularly in some African cultures, where women are considered inferior to men.? It goes back to a patriarchal culture that considers the girl-child as only good enough for the kitchen and to be married off.? Although such thoughts are getting less popular, there are unfortunately still cultures that gamble with the future of the girl-child, that do not believe in investing in their education, or that they are equally capable of success in any field.
2. The above culture has resulted in an unintended wiring of women where some women believe in this narrative and see themselves as less than their potential.? For example, some women are raised to believe they should be seen and not heard, to believe they must give way to the man, etc.? Unfortunately, this conditioning is being perpetuated in families and societies?resulting?in women being their own worst limiters.?
3. Changing the status quo requires a collective effort across spheres. Women alone cannot fix this existential issue. We need all who believe in the power of the collective and the value of equity to band together to drive this change. Achieving this change also requires some intentionality and a change in perspective of why addressing gender inequity is in everyone's best interest (as evidenced by statistics):

• There is a strong correlation between gender parity and economic growth - according to a McKinsey study, addressing gender proportionality could add up to $12 trillion to the global economy by 2025?[1]. A PWC[2]report on the Impact of women on Nigeria's economy identified that increasing women's participation in OECD countries could boost the economy by $ 6 trillion while persistent gender gaps could cost up to 15% of GDP.
• For business-minded individuals, aiming for gender representation is good for business. Several McKinsey studies suggest a strong linkage between business performance and gender equity.? A catalyst report also found that firms with better gender diversity had 35% better return on equity than firms who did not.?
• The girls are doing better in education - more females (41%) than males (36%) attain tertiary education levels.?[3]

Based on the?above, there is a need for a shift in mindset from the perception that society is doing women a favour by giving them room. The reality is that society has so much to gain by embracing equity.

4. As we continue to exist in a multi-generational universe, we must pay attention to the upbringing of the male child, teaching them very early about the importance of embracing and supporting equality. These young ones will be instrumental in driving the needed change.

5. On the other end of the divide, women must be deliberate in building the right pedigree and continue to be intentional in taking their place and harnessing available support infrastructure.? While there are laws enacted to drive equity, women's advancement will be accelerated by leveraging available opportunities in different spheres e.g. building the needed capabilities, expanding their capacity, and leveraging networks to ride the wave of progress to the top.

6. Women must believe in themselves and build relevant social, intellectual, and political gravitas to progress irrespective of the forces that may stand in their way. And there would be forces that will challenge women's progress and their right to sit at the table even when they have more than earned this right! What is important is to keep pushing forward and never looking back.

The unanimous conclusion is that there is a lot of work to?be done?to drive the change in mindset and sustained support for the advancement of women generally.?

In the final analysis, the ideal state is that good leadership either in business or politics, should not be a function of gender!? If all things were equal, and both women and men had their rightful place and were provided a level playing ground and nurtured from childhood to adulthood without any dropping off the radar or needing to be subordinated to the other, then it would be a function of the best man or woman winning the race.???

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