The United Nations and the African Development Bank have expressed willingness to support Nigeria in its efforts to reduce gender inequality.
Ms. Beatrice Eyong, United Nations Women Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS, and Mrs. Patience Ekechukwu, Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Specialist, African Development Bank, Nigeria Country Department, made the commitment on Monday in Abuja at the opening of a two-day capacity-building workshop on gender-responsive planning and budgeting.
Eyong stressed that the cost of gender inequality in Nigeria is substantial and affects economic growth, productivity, public finances and social development.
She emphasised IMF analysis showing that if Nigeria reduced gender inequality to the level seen in comparable countries, real GDP per capita growth could be about 1.25 percentage points higher per year.
“This is because gender gaps reduce labour productivity, entrepreneurship and the efficient allocation of talent.
“Nigeria’s Gender Profile and Roadmap to Equality 2030 also cited evidence that closing gender gaps could increase Nigeria’s GDP by two to three per cent annually, while the Nigerian Economic Summit Group estimated that gender inequality costs Nigeria approximately US$26 billion annually through lost earnings, lower productivity and reduced human capital development.”
She therefore assured Nigeria, “At UN Women, we remain committed to supporting the Government of Nigeria to strengthen institutional mechanisms for gender equality and women’s empowerment.”
“We look forward to working with all stakeholders to ensure that gender-responsive planning and budgeting becomes an institutional standard rather than an exception.
She explained that gender-responsive budgeting is not simply about allocating resources for men and women.
“It helps us deliberately address the different needs, priorities and constraints experienced by women, men, boys and girls.
“Gender-responsive planning and budgeting is therefore not merely a gender agenda; it is a governance, public finance and development effectiveness agenda.
“It is about ensuring that public resources are allocated and utilised in ways that produce equitable outcomes and maximise development impact for all citizens.
“Across the world, evidence consistently shows that public institutions that integrate gender perspectives in planning and budgeting into decision-making are more responsive, more transparent and ultimately more impactful.
“Nigeria’s development aspirations under the National Development Plan and the SDGs cannot be achieved while nearly half of the population faces barriers to full participation.
“Gender inequalities have tremendous costs on development, affecting, as I have said, economic growth, poverty reduction and human development outcomes.”
She said that the objective of the workshop therefore “is to ensure that gender-responsive planning and budgeting becomes embedded within our systems.”
Mrs Patience Ekechukwu, Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Specialist, African Development Bank, Nigeria Country Department, said gender equality and women’s empowerment is central to achieving inclusive and sustainable development across Africa.
She pointed out that “gender-responsive planning and budgeting is a strategic policy instrument that helps governments identify and address gender and inequality gaps in access to opportunities, resources, services and economic participation.
“By ensuring that development policies, programmes, domestic resource mobilisation and public procurement respond justly to the priorities of women and men, girls and boys, it promotes more equitable, efficient and impactful use of public resources.”
She also noted that “Ultimately, gender-responsive budgeting strengthens accountability, improves development outcomes and contributes to more inclusive and sustainable economic growth by closing gender inequality gaps.”
She added, “The importance of gender-responsive budgeting lies in its ability to translate commitments on gender equality into concrete investments and measurable results.
“A policy commitment to gender equality must be reflected in data measuring the gaps, planning processes, programmes and project designs. This requires moving beyond simply identifying women as beneficiaries of development programmes.
Gender-responsive budgeting strengthens both the effectiveness and the equity of public resources, including public procurement and public expenditure, by aligning public resources with the distinct needs and constraints of different population groups.
“It helps governments close gender inequality gaps and allocate resources more efficiently.
Therefore, the African Development Bank remains committed to supporting African countries in advancing inclusive development, strengthening institutions and promoting gender equality.
The representative of the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Nko Esuabana said gender planning and budgeting simply means mainstreaming gender considerations into decision-making within the annual budget cycle and other key decision-making processes.
“By this, we promote awareness of gender inequalities and their causes, undertake policy analysis, review and appraisal, and then design gender-responsive programmes which will address existing inequalities in order to cater for the different disaggregated needs of our population, especially women, children and other persons with special needs.”
Dr. Deborah O. N. Odoh, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning in her welcome remarks said the mission of the Ministry in the execution of its mandate, remains committed to strengthening the integration of gender-responsive approaches across government activities.
She stressed that gender-responsive planning and budgeting is not just about getting resources to women and girls.
According to her, “It requires us to understand how policies, programmes and public expenditure affect women, men, girls and boys differently, identify existing inequalities and ensure resources are directed towards addressing these challenges.”
The current programme, she said recognised gender equality and inclusion as essential to achieving the objectives of the Nigeria Agenda 2050 and the Sustainable Development Goals.
She added, “Our planning and budgeting processes must therefore recognise the different needs, circumstances and opportunities of women, men, girls and boys, and ensure that public resources are deployed in ways that address identified inequalities and promote equitable development outcomes.
“The Federal Government has demonstrated its commitment to strengthening gender considerations within national development planning and public financial management.
“In this regard, the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning recognises gender-responsive planning and budgeting as a critical instrument for ensuring that national policies, development plans and public expenditures contribute meaningfully to reducing gender disparities, strengthening human capital development and improving the well-being of Nigerians.”