The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Federal Government (FG) to comply with the 35% affirmative action for women. This action allows women to occupy 35% of all appointments.
Justice Donatus Okorowo while delivering the judgement on Wednesday said the FG had the obligation to implement the 35% affirmative action, accusing past governments of acting in breach of international treaties on women’s participation in government.
Justice Okorowo added that the National Gender Policy is not merely a policy statement, but one that must be backed with requisite action on the part of the government.
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He said the 35% affirmative action which entails appointive positions for women to ensure inclusivity must not be merely on paper as Nigeria is a signatory to international treaties, particularly on those entrenching the rights of women.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Women Trust Fund, Mufuliat Fijabi said: “For us, this is a victory and we know that the government will acknowledge this and do the needful in terms of ensuring that we have a balanced system of governance that will bring about fast development for the country”.
BizWatch Nigeria report that this is a victory for women in Nigeria who have been pushing against the rejection of gender-related bills by lawmakers in the ongoing constitution review process.
One of the bills titled ‘Act to Alter the Provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to Provide for Special Seat for Women in the National and State Houses of Assembly; and for Related Matters’, failed after 208 members out of 290 present, voted against it in March 2022.
