Nigeria has been recording low participation of women in both elective and appointive positions. This is a growing
concern to many Nigerians. However, concerted efforts have been made by government and non-governmental
organizations to increase the level of participation of women in politics in line with the declaration made at the
fourth World Conference on women in Beijing, which advocated 30% affirmative action.

In Nigeria, the extant National Gender Policy (NGP) recommended 35% affirmative action instead and sought for a more inclusive representation of women with at least 35% of both elective political and appointive public service positions respectively. The under representation of women in political participation gained root due to the patriarchal practice inherent in our society, much of which were obvious from pre-colonial era till date. However, the re-introduction of democratic governance has witnessed once again an increase in women political participation both in elective and appointive offices.

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