THE need for government to create enabling environment for economic and political empowerment of women was the thrust of a two-day art exhibition organised by the National Gallery of Art (NGA) at Abuja. The group exhibition is aimed at providing socio-economic empowerment of women in the visual arts sector.
With the theme: No Woman Left Behind: Nigerian Women Bridging the Gap in Governance and Politics, the event was well attended by female visual artists, most of who participated in the exhibition. The two-day event, held between February 1 and 2, began with a roadshow to sensitise women on the need to participate fully in the 2019 general election.
According to Director Educational Services, National Gallery of Art, Evelyn Ikuenobe-Otaigbe, initiator of the programme, Women in Visual Art (WIVA) is an empowerment and enlightenment platform for women in visual arts to be part of current issues in governance.
She stated that the artworks on display showed that women have historically played roles in governance.She, however, believed that there was need for increased women participation in governance.
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Grace Gepke.She admonished women to take greater interest in governance and politics.
In her keynote address titled: No Woman Left Behind: Nigerian Women Bridging the Gap in Governance and Politics, Chairman, Guarantee Trust Bank (GTB), Mrs. Osaretin Demuren, advised that as the country approaches another general elections, there is the need for leaders to remember the Late Nelson Mandela’s statement that ‘Freedom cannot be achieved unless the women have been emancipated from all forms of oppression’
Listing some of the obstacles militating against women’s desired involvement in governance, Demuren blamed the situation on institutional, historical, socio-economic as well as cultural factors.
She said: “Traditionally, women were raised to focus on homemaking, supporting their husbands and rearing children. In that capacity, the formal education of girls was deemed to be of less consequence.
“Basic literacy and numeracy were only important for training the children. Also, the woman’s other goal was to support her husband and assist in building his career and eventual success, thus the saying ‘Behind every successful man there is a woman’.
“These activities and responsibilities deter her from focusing on her development and education as well.”
She noted that while the society focused on ensuring that the girl child is fully equipped to handle her socio-cultural roles, it forgot almost completely to instill the right moral and upbringing in the male child.
Consequently, the male child grows to relate with the female counterpart based on the already established structured roles for the women.
Demuren, therefore, urged women to continuously seek to develop skills for a better living standard rather than undervalue their capacity to take challenges, particularly, leadership roles.
“Whilst our male counterparts request and sometimes fight to be given leadership roles and do so with little or no remorse, we as women, maybe due to cultural indoctrination, play a passive role in positioning ourselves for leadership positions even when we possess the required capacity.
“When asked to take up higher positions, we question our capability to take charge. We need to speak up for ourselves and when the opportunity arises to take up a leadership role or a new challenge; we should not shy away from this but take the bull by the horn.”
The speaker expressed worries that politically, it has been difficult for women to break the glass ceiling.
“In terms of appointments, each government has tried to increase the number of female representation in its cabinet whilst in terms of elective positions; the number of women has continued to decrease.We have never achieved up to 10 per cent in number of women representatives in the National Assembly.
“My charge today is for us to know that it is important we participate in governance and politics. It is no mean feat to be part of decision making in Nigeria and to achieve this, we need to be educated, we need to build capacity, we need to put ourselves forward when the opportunity arises and we need to develop a solution mindset for the challenges that will definitely come with it”, she stated.
Director, Diaspora Centre, University of Abuja, Prof Mabel I. E. Evwierhoma admitted that one major development index affecting women in the 21st century is the political gap separating women from their goals and aspiration in politics.
“In Africa, politics and governance have witnessed the near to zero participation for women. This situation has created enduring political dependence on former colonial masters in Europe, donor agencies and global economies all over the world.
“Thus, most economies in Africa including that of Nigeria witness the inaccessibility of women into core governance”, she added.
Evwierhoma added that access to education and economic power are equally necessary to bridge the space between women and political activity.
“This would enable their participation in electoral politics, run for elective and even appointive posts. They can also be encouraged to form pressure/lobbying groups.
“This will discourage marginalisation, ignorance of and about women’s role in politics and governance. It should, however, be noted that it is at this level that culture and tradition hemline women to positions of invisibility, certain projects are necessary to release women from political doldrums and their disadvantaged positions and facilitate their pursuit of development,” she said.
According to her, factors that have continued to thwart women’s quest for political parity include tradition and culture, gender inequality arising from sex profiling or stereotypes, feminisation of poverty as well as nature versus nature.
Others are apathy of women due to spousal influence, vacuum in leadership, identity politics, low self-worth and patriarchy.
She insisted that education and political empowerment remained crucial for women to make it as leaders or even participants in governance.
“Women must not be like the seams of our garments, hemmed and restricted. Rather, it behoves women to be like the elastic in our inner garments that stretches to allow more vista for relational associations across religion, class, ethnic makeup,” she said.
She added that the aim of her paper was to conscientise participants to be willing to work towards bridging the gap that has often curtailed women’s participation in politics and governance.
“Women can no longer be inhibited from their formal political roles, because they are citizens too. I expect participants to return to their desks in their various spheres of endeavour and be better advocate of building bridges for women. Women have to soar in politics. No other bargain is worth our time,” she added.
The exhibition was declared open by Gekpe. The guests were entertained with a drama presentation by staff of NGA, titled Hatched.
Written by Mrs. Otaigbe, the drama depicts women coming together from the six geo-political zones of the country and centres on the birth of a new Nigeria by six different mothers representing the six geo-political zones of Nigeria. The drama mirrors the hurdles women face in every aspect of their lives.
Earlier, the Director-General, National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), Otunba Segun Runsewe, reiterated the crucial role women play in their individual families and the nation at large.