The Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ) is launching initiatives to bridge the significant gender gap in Nigeria’s legal profession.
At a media parley held at its Lagos headquarters, WIMBIZ disclosed its efforts to address the imbalance.
According to a report by the International Bar Association’s Legal Policy & Research Unit, women comprise about 40% of Nigeria’s lawyers.
The public sector leads in female representation, with women holding 61% of senior positions, followed closely by the corporate sector at 55%.
In contrast, law firms trail behind with women occupying 43% of senior roles, while the judiciary lags further behind at 33%.
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Moreover, women make up only 4% of Nigeria’s over 700 Senior Advocates.
Omowunmi Akingbohungbe, Executive Director of WIMBIZ, highlighted the gender imbalance in the legal profession, citing the underrepresentation of women as Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) as a prime example.
To address this disparity, WIMBIZ is launching targeted initiatives to empower women lawyers, both seasoned and emerging, to reach leadership positions.
“We’re focusing on women in law in 2025, identifying key gaps and working to amplify these issues while equipping women with the skills to attain leadership roles,” Akingbohungbe stated.
We launched this initiative with a webinar featuring Nigerian Justices and Senior Advocates, who shared their stories, challenges, and experiences in reaching top positions.
Next, we convened a stakeholder session focused on women in law, bringing together judges, law firm partners, and senior advocates to discuss existing barriers and leadership pathways.
In breakout sessions, participants explored ways to ease women’s journeys to leadership.
From this dialogue, we gained valuable insights and identified four key pathways, which we’ll publish in an accessible journal for law students and young lawyers to use as a reference guide.
Akingbohungbe highlighted the Women in Law Mentoring Programme as a key outcome of their efforts.
“In this group mentoring session, we bring together registered participants and mentees to explore the leadership pathways we’ve identified. Each mentee determines their desired pathway and receives tailored mentorship to achieve their goals.
The programme’s objective is to equip each mentee with a personalized work plan, spanning five to ten years, to attain their desired leadership position,” Akingbohungbe explained.
The three-month virtual programme features bi-weekly sessions, providing mentees with regular guidance and support.
Beyond bridging the law profession’s gap, WIMBIZ is empowering women to own property, Akingbohungbe said. “We’re sensitizing women on property acquisition, savings, and initiatives that can make it easier for them,” she added.
Through targeted initiatives, WIMBIZ amplifies awareness about the gender gap in Nigeria’s legal profession and provides concrete support to empower women to leadership positions.
Meanwhile, WIMBIZ Board Chair Bisi Adeyemi emphasized the organization’s commitment to addressing injustice. “We’ll speak up if we see injustice,” she said, noting they’re monitoring developments, including the Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan case.
Rolake Akinkugbe-Filani, a WIMBIZ board member, debunked the misconception that promoting women in leadership is tokenism. “Inclusion makes business and economic sense,” she stressed, citing supporting data. “It’s time to recognize that promoting women in leadership is not just about fairness, but also about driving progress.”
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