The Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has welcomed the Nigerian Communications Commission’s (NCC) initiative to promote women’s leadership in Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, describing it as a significant step toward addressing gender disparities in digital governance.
In a statement signed by its Gender Coordinator, Fatima Babakura, CITAD said the initiative aligned with efforts to build a more inclusive digital ecosystem by increasing women’s participation in leadership and decision-making within the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector.
The organisation said it had consistently advocated greater representation of women in digital policy-making and recalled that it implemented the Incubating Young Female Digital Policy Leaders for Engendering Digital Policy Making in Nigeria project in 2023.
According to the statement, the project was designed to address the underrepresentation of women in digital policy formulation and leadership across Nigeria’s ICT ecosystem.
It stated that the project equipped young women with skills in digital policy analysis, advocacy, internet governance, telecommunications policy, digital rights, cybersecurity, data governance, artificial intelligence and digital inclusion.
“The objective was to build a pipeline of young women capable of participating meaningfully in digital policy processes and contributing to Nigeria’s digital future,” the statement said.
CITAD said the project also produced an empirical study titled “A Headline Count on Women Participation in Digital Policy Making in ICT Related Agencies in Nigeria”, which examined women’s representation in ICT governance institutions.
According to the organisation, the study revealed that women occupied only a small proportion of leadership positions in key ICT agencies, falling short of the aspirations of Nigeria’s National Gender Policy.
It noted that the findings demonstrated that the gender digital divide extended beyond unequal access to technology to unequal participation in institutions where digital policies were formulated and implemented.
The organisation said it subsequently developed a policy brief titled Promoting Women Participation in Digital Policy-Making in Nigeria, recommending measures such as increased representation of women on boards and management teams, leadership development programmes, institutional gender policies, gender audits and stronger accountability mechanisms.
CITAD said the NCC’s initiative was consistent with Nigeria’s National Gender Policy, the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy, as well as the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal Five on gender equality.
It, however, stressed that leadership development programmes alone would not be sufficient to achieve sustainable progress.
“Sustainable progress requires institutional reforms that deliberately remove barriers limiting women’s advancement into decision-making positions.
“Building individual capacity must go hand in hand with creating enabling systems that allow qualified women to occupy leadership roles and influence policy outcomes,” it said.
The organisation further emphasised that gender-responsive digital policy-making was essential for ensuring that Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda benefited all segments of society.
It noted that diverse leadership structures contributed to more inclusive and responsive policies, particularly in areas such as digital access, online safety, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data governance, digital rights and emerging technologies.
CITAD urged the NCC to institutionalise gender inclusion through its recruitment processes, governance structures, leadership development frameworks and internal policies.
It also called on other ICT institutions, including the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT), Galaxy Backbone, Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST), Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF) and the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy to implement similar initiatives.
The organisation further urged policymakers, regulators, development partners and private sector stakeholders to adopt measurable targets for women’s participation in digital governance, supported by regular monitoring, transparent reporting and institutional accountability.
CITAD reaffirmed its commitment to collaborating with government agencies, civil society organisations, academia, development partners and the private sector to promote evidence-based, gender-responsive digital governance in Nigeria.