By Hassan Hussain | March 4, 2026
The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has emphasized that empowering women is crucial to the country’s development, with its Women’s Commission calling for stronger efforts to promote equal opportunities.
Speaking at the 2026 International Women’s Day celebration in Abuja, which was held under the theme “Empowering Women: The Path to Equal Rights and Economic Justice,” the TUC Women’s Commission’s Chairperson, Comrade Esther Asabe Ahmadu stressed that, “empowering women goes beyond leadership appointments, requiring the removal of systemic historical barriers limiting their aspirations and opportunities.”
“Women have been described as the backbone of every developing society, with a call for greater efforts to empower them to become active and equal agents of change,” she said.
Asabe Ahmadu reiterated that unequal opportunities and limited access to leadership positions have hindered women from contributing fully to national development, while their voices are often marginalized.
She noted that despite progress, women’s economic contributions are still undervalued and a large portion of their labour, especially unpaid care work, remains invisible. She called for economic justice, including equal pay, access to credit, property ownership, and support for women entrepreneurs.
In her remarks, the Country Director of the International Labour Organization (ILO) for Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, Dr. Vanessa Phala-Moyo, said women’s participation in the labour market remains limited.
Nevertherless, she reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to promoting social justice in the workplace and protecting the rights of women, acknowledging that several challenges still persist in many countries, including Nigeria, particularly in ensuring equal opportunities for women in the world of work and politics.
She acknowledged progress in some sectors but noted that women are still under-represented in politics and top leadership positions.
“We are yet to see women leading in many areas of public life. It is time we have a woman Inspector-General of Police, a woman governor, and even a woman president in Nigeria,” she said.
Phala-Moyo highlighted persistent challenges such as gender pay gaps, limited access to decent work, and the concentration of women in the informal sector, where labour protections are often weak.
In the same vein, the Representative of UN Women to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States, Beatrice Eyong, described gender inequality as a major injustice that must be urgently addressed.
She noted that the TUC could serve as a strong example in promoting rights, justice, and action for women and girls, including women living with disabilities and those affected by HIV and AIDS.
Eyong also revealed that about twenty-two percent of households in Nigeria are headed by women, representing nearly forty million people. She warned that failure to prioritise women’s economic empowerment, education, and access to justice could lead to the exclusion of millions of citizens, with serious consequences for national development.
In his remarks, the TUC President Festus Osifo commended the Women’s Commission for amplifying Nigerian women’s voices and advocating solutions to their challenges.
Festus Osifo, highlighted the progress the union has made in improving women’s representation within its structures since the current leadership came into office.
According to him, women’s participation in key leadership positions within the union had previously been very low, with only two or three women represented in the National Executive Council.
Osifo also emphasized that gender equality begins in the home, urging fathers to model respect for women in order to shape the attitudes of the next generation.
The International Women’s Day celebration recognises women’s contributions to societal development, observed annually worldwide.
