Women groups in Nigeria are asking for the implementation of the Presidential Executive Order 5 which directs that all procuring authorities shall give preference to Nigerian companies and firms in the award of contracts, in line with the Public Procurement Act 2007, saying the order is an opportunity for women businesses to thrive.
This request was made during a roundtable meeting organised by the Nigerian Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) Women Business Group, in collaboration with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, UN Women, and the Partnership for Advancing Women in Economic Development, anchored by the Development Research and Project Centre.
In her opening remarks at the occasion, a former Minister of Trade and Industries and Chairperson of NACCIMA Women Business Group, Aisha Abubakar, disclosed that the presidential executive order should be enforced to enable women to have the desired quota in procurement and other government businesses.
While describing the need to implement the order, she said gender equality is a human rights issue and an economic opportunity for the vulnerable. She then urged the federal and state governments to open up procurement for women businesses to empower them, create job opportunities, and enhance the socio-economic development of Nigeria.
In her remark at the occasion, the National Coordinator of Partnership for Advancing Women in Economic Development (PAWED), Vera Ndanusa, who is also the President of the National Association of Women Entrepreneurs, said women will no longer continue to debate the economic, social and political benefits of supporting women’s economic empowerment since it has been established in international conventions and declarations, including the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. She said all available evidence confirms that supporting women’s entrepreneurship and women-owned businesses helps to increase national growth and development.
