In Nigeria, A New Local Leader is Changing the Lives of Her Constituents
How a sole female legislator is working to amplify all voices, one need at a time
Democracy in Nigeria is over two decades old. However, Africa’s largest democracy is still limited in its representation of women, youth, and persons with disabilities.
Despite being a signatory to international and regional agreements to promote the equal representation of women in politics, Nigeria often falls short of its commitments. Currently, less than four percent of parliamentary seats and only 17 percent of cabinet seats are filled by women.
This absence of strong female voices in Nigerian politics inspired career civil servant Kate Mamuno to run for public office. In 2019, Kate became the sole female legislator in the Adamawa State House of Assembly. She currently serves as the chairperson for both Adamawa’s House Committee on Finance, Appropriation and Budget, and the House Committee on Women’s Affairs.
But it was a long road to get there and Kate had to build the trust of a disillusioned constituency.
Closing the Gap Between Citizens and Government
Though ranked only as “partly free” by Freedom House’s “2020 Freedom in the World Index” due to ongoing challenges with security and civil liberties, Nigeria has made significant progress in improving the quality and competitiveness of its elections. Despite these gains, the country continues to struggle with low voter participation in elections, often tied to a lack of trust in government institutions.
Open communication between elected officials and constituents is crucial to a citizen-centered government. According to a poll conducted by USAID partner International Republican Institute (IRI) in 2018, Nigerians feel that there is a significant gap between themselves and the government. This impacts the ability of the government to effectively represent Nigerians and deliver essential services to its citizens.
This lack of effective representation often marginalizes women. When asked whether there was an opportunity to express one’s opinion during constituent outreach activities conducted by state officials, 57 percent of all women polled responded “no.” Throughout the country women not only struggle to be heard, but also to participate. Nigeria ranks 185th out of 188 countries for the percentage of female positions in parliament. This exclusion is most significantly linked to gender-based violence and cultural norms. Nigerian women looking to participate in the political realm often face violent threats, a lack of media coverage, and sexist attitudes.
In the run-up to the 2019 elections, USAID worked with IRI to train women candidates on how to run for public office. Kate, a former director of finance and supply with the Adamawa State Government, was one of those women, and received help to develop campaign messaging and engage with the media. This enabled her to interact more intimately with voters and contributed to her victory against 14 male candidates in the election. After earning 17,370 votes, defeating an incumbent candidate who came in a distant second with 9,771 votes, Kate became the only female elected into the 25 member Adamawa assembly.
Amplifying Nigerian Women’s Voices
Since being elected, Kate has been at the forefront of the Assembly’s work. And she kept the “firsts” coming by holding a first-ever town hall and opening the first constituency office in her state.
Town halls are rare in Nigeria. Often, citizens report they have no method of reporting their concerns to elected officials and elected officials say citizens would only use such forums as opportunities to air personal grievances.
But this town hall proved productive — for all. Kate learned funding was sorely needed for local schools and businesses, families affected by natural disasters, and constituents whose access to clean water had been cut off.
Kate sprang into action, and provided funding for local education and business initiatives and relief for constituents affected by natural disasters. Then, using both state funding and her personal funds, she helped her constituents drill 178 boreholes to ensure her constituents had access to clean water. She also addressed local women’s concerns about infant and maternal mortality, seeing to it that local health centers received over 2,600 “safe delivery” kits.
And upon receiving the state’s proposed budget, Kate utilized past IRI budget training to call another town hall meeting with her constituency, ensuring citizens voices were heard before its passage.
These townhalls resulted in both an increase in communication and a renewed faith in government responsiveness. Eric Kinta, a constituent present at a recent town hall, said “most of the participants never expected that such an engagement would result in an automatic response to the needs of the citizens…if all legislators and elected officials are as responsive as Hon. Kate Mamuno then ours will be the best democracy.”
Kate has also convened women leaders to discuss local challenges and support other women looking to enter politics.
She made her mission clear to the Daily Post last year, telling the outlet that “[Nigeria’s President Muhammadu] Buhari said women belong to the kitchen. We disagree. Women are made for many significant roles, certainly not just the kitchen. We are working towards producing Nigeria’s first female president in 2023.”
Just one year after taking office, Kate has empowered women throughout Adamawa to participate in political processes and make their voices heard.
USAID-supported leaders like Kate — whose accomplishments exemplify the enormous impact that can be made when democracies recognize the importance of representing all citizens — are critical to helping build stable, resilient, and democratic societies, while promoting fairness and justice for all.
About the Author
Alyssa Rickard is a Program Manager for IRI, the International Republican Institute.
