Where the money goes in 2022

Nigeria has recently been ranked 139^th (with an index of 0.627) by the global gender gap report 2021, with a regression of 0.8% in the index recorded in 2020. The representation of women in political leadership and decision-making remains very low with women making up only 3.6% of seats in parliament and 16.2% of appointed ministers. Violence against women and girls is also high with 13.2% of women aged 15-49 years reporting physical and/or sexual violence; 43.4% of women aged 20–24 years married or in a union before age 18; and a Female Genital Mutilation rate of 48.4%. In the economy, women are overrepresented in insecure low-paying jobs (84.8 per cent) compared to men (71.7%, and are underrepresented in overall labour force participation (47.8% for women compared to 57.8% for men). Women businesses are also constrained by limited access to finance, financial information, technology and business skills. Pre-existing gender inequalities are exacerbated by multiple security challenges, including kidnappings, banditry, farmer–herder conflicts and attacks by Boko Haram insurgents recorded, especially in the North East. The demand for a separation from the Nigerian state was significantly high n the South-Eastern region and protests against the arrest of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra which led to sit-at-home orders on Monday of every week in this area. Women and girls were also affected by the regress in the Nigeria fiscal space for supporting programmatic efforts toward social protection, safeguarding livelihood, and ensuring labour market participation following COVID-19 measures and the related economic downturn.