Women business leaders discuss intergenerational dialogue in the Private Sector

To address the above challenges, and in line with the Generation Equality campaign, UN Women Nigeria, in partnership with Women in Successful Careers (WISCAR), convened an intergenerational dialogue between private sector women leaders and young female professionals across industries in the private sector.

The virtual event discussed the key challenges facing women, lessons and opportunities for expanding women’s leadership in the private sector, as part of the sector’s contribution to fostering gender equality outcomes from the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

The Chairperson of First Bank of Nigeria, Mrs Ibukun Awosika, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of MainOne, Ms Funke Opeke, and the Chief Commercial Officer at Mixta Africa, Ms Rolake Akinkugbe-Filani, were among the panellists.

In her speech, UN Women Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Ms Comfort Lamptey, remarked that the webinar is a continuation of the dialogue on women's leadership. Twenty-five years after the Beijing Declaration, she reiterated, slow progress has been made on gender equality.

“Continuity in addressing inequalities is crucial, which is why last year we began an initiative with WISCAR to bring older and younger women together to sustain the tempo of achieving gender equality. We need the government, CSOs, private sector, everyone.”—Comfort Lamptey, UN Women Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS

While presenting the keynote address, Mrs Awosika noted that gender equality is necessary for growth and development, saying it is the surest path to reducing the poverty and social ills currently overwhelming society.

“Women are already below par on all indices, and with COVID-19, they have become even more vulnerable. They have borne the brunt of the pandemic. Investing in women represents smart economics. It makes economic sense to get women involved. COVID-19 has proved that we can create a new way to work without making women leave their homes. We need to build a system that keeps/supports women at work.”—Ibukun Awosika, Chairperson of First Bank of Nigeria

The Senior Special Assistant to the President of Nigeria on Sustainable Development Goals, Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, shared a similar view: “Gender equality guarantees the socioeconomic development of any society. The involvement of the private sector is very key to this agenda. We must all work together to achieve the SDGs by 2030."

Women were advised to focus their attention on achieving set goals. This strategy, according to the panellists, is effective in earning women more seats at the decision-making table.

“One of the lessons I learned early in life is that men tend not to respect women, but they respect results. So, I focused on achieving results, because that changes the playing field.”—Ms Funke Opeke, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of MainOne

Ms Opeke acknowledged the distractions caused by microaggressions and sexual harassment in the workplace and educational system, saying women must learn to hold their ground in such situations.

One of the ways to stand out, manage relationships and climb the career ladder is by acquiring expertise and then upskilling. According to one of the panellists, Rolake Akinkugbe-Filani, “strategic thinking skills are non-negotiable”.

Another panellist, Christiana Onoja, commented that a lack of adequate mentorship programmes for young female scientists helps to sustain gender inequality.

“One of the challenges I faced as a female engineering student was that there were little or no female mentors in STEM. Even today, there is still a shortage of mentors, particular in the field of engineering and technology.”—Christiana Onoja, panellist

The virtual conversation, with more than 455 attendees, ended with commitments to further advance the rights and causes of women in society and public life.