‘It should be 50-50’ — Beatrice Eyong says Nigeria needs gender parity in governance

Beatrice Eyong, the UN Women country representative to Nigeria, has called for gender parity in governance, saying women should hold half of the seats in parliaments. 

Eyong spoke during an interview with Chikas Kumle, executive director of the Women Development Monitoring Initiative (WDMI), on the theme, ‘Representation: The Urgency of Now’.

Eyong said women, who constitute nearly 50 percent of Nigeria’s population, deserve equal representation in governance.

“What should have been in the rules and regulations of this country should have been parity. We should not have seen a parliament of less than 5 percent. We should not have seen a private sector of less than 50 percent. We should not have seen the state house of assemblies less than 50 percent. It should have been 50-50,” she said.

“So I hope that as we continue to bring these points to our leaders, they will actually come to see it.”

Article.