UN Women has commended Nigeria for making significant strides in implementing the Beijing Platform for Action, particularly highlighting advances in women’s political participation, economic empowerment, education, and efforts to combat gender-based violence.
The recognition came during a high-level consultation in Abuja on Monday focused on Nigeria’s Beijing+30 Report Review, which is being prepared for the upcoming 69th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69).
The UN Women Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Beatrice Eyong, acknowledged the country’s achievements while noting that challenges remain that require collective action to drive meaningful change.
“This consultation is a crucial step in ensuring that Nigeria’s national report for CSW69 is inclusive, reflective of diverse perspectives, and aligned with the realities of women and girls across the country,” Eyong stated during the event.
The meeting served as a follow-up to an initial report drafted in November 2024, providing stakeholders an opportunity to refine the document through what Eyong described as “a participatory and inclusive approach.”
Eyong reiterated UN Women’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s gender equality initiatives: “We remain steadfast in our support to the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and all stakeholders in accelerating gender-responsive policies, strengthening women’s leadership, and ensuring sustained progress on the commitments made under the BPfA.”
The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, adopted at the Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995, remains one of the most comprehensive global frameworks for achieving gender equality. It identifies 12 critical areas requiring urgent attention, including women and poverty, education and training of women, women’s health, violence against women, and women in armed conflict.
Other focus areas include women in the economy, women in power and decision-making, institutional mechanisms for women’s advancement, human rights of women, women and the media, women and the environment, and the girl child.
Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs. Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, represented at the event by Director of Women Development Mrs. Friya Bulus, described the platform as an opportunity to “celebrate the achievements being made by Nigeria, and the way forward as a country.”
“We are here today to recognise the progress we’ve made, Beijing plus 30, and to assess our performance, to look at the report we’ve been able to put together, to assess our areas of challenges, look at what we need to push out as best practices over the years, and also look at what has constituted major challenges to women economic empowerment and gender equality,” Bulus stated.
She called on participants to critically examine the reports produced over time, acknowledging the significant effort invested in compiling Nigeria’s Beijing Plus 30 report.
The consultation brought together representatives from government, civil society, academia, and the development sector. Their participation, according to Eyong, demonstrates a shared commitment to “reviewing our progress, identifying key priorities, and shaping strategic recommendations that will contribute to Nigeria’s gender equality agenda beyond Beijing+30.”
The findings and recommendations from this consultation will inform Nigeria’s official report to be presented at CSW69, where countries worldwide will evaluate three decades of progress since the landmark Beijing conference established global standards for women’s rights and gender equality.
The UN Women representative reaffirmed the organisation’s partnership in addressing both achievements and persistent gaps in the country’s gender equality landscape.
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