By Rasheeda Yahaya 

 Top government officials, lawmakers, and women’s rights advocates converged in Abuja for the inaugural Nigerian Women Peace, Democracy, and Inclusive Governance Summit, organized by the National Council of Women Societies (NCWS). 

Held under the theme "Women as Catalysts for Peace, Democracy, and Inclusive Governance," held at the International Conference centre in Abuja on Friday 13th November, the landmark gathering moved beyond rhetoric to outline concrete legislative reforms, multi-billion-naira economic scale-ups, and grassroots security initiatives aimed at placing Nigerian women at the center of national development.

?Addressing the summit, the Speaker of the House of Representatives underscored the 10th Assembly’s commitment to dismantling structural barriers through constitutional reform. 

Highlighting the proposed Reserve Seats for Women Bill which seeks to create additional legislative seats in the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly without displacing existing constituencies, the Speaker emphasized that true democracy requires women to hold real decision-making authority.

?"The Nigeria we seek to build must be one where women are not merely invited to participate, but are empowered to lead, influence, and shape the direction of our nation," the Speaker declared. "Our objective must therefore be not simply to increase the number of women in political institutions, but to strengthen the quality and inclusiveness of democratic governance."

?Re-presenting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR whose address was delivered at the summit by Dr. Ekundayo, Director-General of the National Centre for Women Development the Presidency reaffirmed its backing for the Special Seats Bill as an executive priority alongside a sweeping suite of social and economic policies.

?The President noted that his administration declared 2026 the Year of Families and Social Development and highlighted three landmark policies approved by the Federal Executive Council on October 28, 2026: the National Care Policy and Implementation Plan (2026–2030), the National Policy on Menstrual Health and Hygiene Management (2026–2030), and the National Action Plan on Ending Violence Against Children.

 Additionally, the administration pointed to the Nigeria for Women Scale-Up (NFWSU), designed to directly empower five million women across all 36 states and the FCT through Women Affinity Groups.

?"Resilient communities sustain peaceful nations. Resilient women birth peaceful generations," President Tinubu stated in his address. "Nigeria cannot truly talk of shared prosperity until the women begin to share the expansive dividend of Renewed Hope prosperity. When Nigerian women rise, when Nigerian mothers rise, when our Nigerian daughters rise, Nigeria truly arises."

?Welcoming dignitaries and delegates from across the country and the diaspora, the National President of the NCWS, Princess Edna Adura, commended both the Presidency and the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, for translating policy frameworks into tangible grassroots relief. 

She spotlighted the impact of the Renewed Hope Initiative’s (RHI) five-pillar agenda spanning agriculture, economic empowerment, social investment, health, and education as well as targeted interventions like the "Flow with Confidence" grant program and national sanitary pad distribution drives.

?"These are not abstract policies," Princess Adura remarked. "Hundreds of thousands of girls are receiving sanitary pads so that no girl misses school because of her period. Through the food outreach scheme, vulnerable families and persons with disabilities are being fed with dignity, and through the national scholarship program, our children are being given the ability to dream."

 Turning the focus to community security and family stability, the Chairman/Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) issued an urgent call to mothers, market associations, and faith-based women's fellowships to serve as the frontline defense against substance abuse a crisis that directly threatens youth development and democratic stability. 

Pledging institutional backing without stigma, the NDLEA boss urged women to speak out early and utilize agency rehabilitation channels.

?"A woman who comes to us for help will find help, not disgrace," the address promised. "Let us make a covenant today that in every home led by a woman in this hall, there will be peace, there will be no drugs, and there will be a democracy that starts from the family. If we save the women, we save the home; if we save the home, we save Nigeria."

 As the inaugural summit concluded, stakeholders echoed a unified consensus: advancing Nigerian women is neither a partisan favor nor a zero-sum competition, but an urgent democratic imperative essential to securing peace and prosperity ahead of the 2027 general elections and beyond.