THE National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has urged lawmakers in Nigeria to pass the Gender and Equal Opportunity Bill into law.
The Commission also called for the passage of other gender inclusive bills in order to reduce gender-based violence and inequality.
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This was contained in a statement by Executive Secretary of the NHRC Tony Ojukwu, commemorating the 2023 International Women’s Day (IWD), on Wednesday, March 8.
Noting that women have contributed positively to societies around the world, he said gender inclusion should be a significant factor to be considered in governance and policy making.
“Women’s prudence in resource management and developmental skills cannot be overemphasized, therefore, they unarguably remain the pillars of our future. Given the enabling environment and opportunity, women have the potential to turn things around to make the world great and a better place for everyone to live in.
“Nigerian women and other women elsewhere have on different occasions proven that they can perform excellently in drawing policies and making decisions that could turnaround the society; therefore they should be encouraged to unleash their best potentials for the development of the entire society,” Ojukwu noted.
Meanwhile, the United Nations (UN) has also called for the prioritisation of gender equality, noting that progress made in attaining women’s rights were declining.
The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made the call on Tuesday, March 7, adding that women are worst hit by conflicts in various countries and the global climate change emergency.
“As part of the global pushback against democracy, women’s rights over their bodies and autonomy over their lives are being questioned and denied. On International Women’s Day, we must commit to doing better. We need to reverse these horrific trends and stand up for the lives and rights of women and girls, everywhere,” Guterres noted.
Speaking on the theme for the 2023 IWD celebrations, “DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality,” Guterres pointed out that centuries of patriarchy was resulting in discrimination against women in science and technology.
He also called for more efforts towards shrinking gender gaps.
Ijeoma Opara is a journalist with The ICIR. Reach her via [email protected] or @ije_le on Twitter.