Closing Nigeria’s gender gaps could unlock an additional $229bn in economic output, a new report by policy advocacy group BudgIT has indicated.

The new report, State of Women’s Economic Empowerment, launched in the past week, is a novel subnational assessment of the current realities and efforts the 36 states of Nigeria are making to achieve women’s economic empowerment and close gender disparities.

The core pillars of the policy include women in agriculture, women in entrepreneurship, women in the traditional labour market, women in emerging industries, and women’s education and skills acquisition.

The report finds that only 26 per cent of Nigerian women are employed in formal jobs, with limited representation in technical roles and decision-making positions, while earning on average 40 per cent less than men. Persistent discriminatory recruitment practices, job insecurity, unpaid care responsibilities, and restrictive social norms continue to constrain women’s access to decent work and career progression, dampening productivity and long-term growth.

It read, “Women remain largely invisible in formal employment and leadership roles. Only 26% are in formal jobs, with minimal representation in technical fields and decision-making positions. They encounter certain discriminatory practices in recruitment and career progression, earn 40% less than men, face job insecurity, and are often excluded from labour protections. Social norms, workplace discrimination, and unpaid care work further limit their access to decent work and career mobility.

“The WEE policy shows that closing gender gaps in labour force participation could add up to $229bn to Nigeria’s GDP and improve household income security. The goal is to increase women’s formal labour participation from 26% to at least 40%, and eventually 65%, by expanding gender-responsive skills training, enforcing inclusive labour laws, and ensuring access to leadership and high-growth sectors,” read part of the report on women in the traditional labour market.

“In the agricultural sector, while women continue to play a critical role, they own only about 10 per cent of land. The report revealed that the World Bank in 2022 estimated that closing the gender productivity gap in agriculture could increase Nigeria’s GDP by over $2.3bn.

“Women play a critical role in Nigeria’s agricultural sector, yet continue to face deep-rooted barriers, especially in access to land, finance, inputs, and extension services. Currently, women make up only 19.6 per cent of the agricultural labour force, and just about 10% own land, highlighting a significant gender gap in the sector. Despite these challenges, the sector holds huge potential for women.

“The National Women’s Economic Empowerment Policy recognises this and aims to increase women’s participation in agriculture to 30 per cent, with a focus on improving access to land and other resources. It recommends targeted investments in women-led cooperatives, land ownership reforms, climate-smart agricultural training, and financial support to unlock opportunities and drive inclusive growth in the sector.”

The report, which ranked sub-national governments, saw Lagos in the lead with the highest score of 19 out of 24.

The states were graded on four categories: transforming, progressing, emerging, and lagging.

“From the data, seven states (Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Delta, Ekiti, Kaduna, Kwara, and Lagos) scored within the ‘transforming’ category, with Lagos coming in at the highest score of 19 out of 24. This indicates that these states have made tangible and measurable efforts towards women’s economic empowerment and strong alignment with the goals of the WEE policy and impactful reforms, despite having room for improvement. These states performed consistently well across all pillars, particularly in the traditional labour market and education and skills acquisition.

“Twenty-four states fell into the ‘progressing’ category, reflecting moderate yet meaningful strides in implementing the policy interventions outlined by the indicators, with gaps in agriculture and emerging industries still prominent. Five states were classified as ‘emerging’, demonstrating some efforts yet uneven performance across focus areas, especially low scores in emerging industries and agricultural inclusion. Finally, no state fell into the ‘lagging’ category, although with states like Adamawa and Zamfara (with overall scores of 14.5, being the lowest grade attained in this assessment), there are still several areas for reform for Nigeria’s subnationals to achieve women’s economic empowerment.”

The report called for support for women-owned businesses to move beyond one-off programmes: “There is a need for deliberate, well-structured interventions that provide women with access to finance, tailored business training, and real market opportunities.”

According to the World Bank, women still earn 66 per cent less than men, and when selling directly to consumers, they earn 46 per cent less.

It stated, “These gaps aren’t just about capacity; they reflect deeper issues like limited access to credit, poor visibility in formal markets, and exclusion from decision-making spaces. Yet, the opportunity is undeniable: if women had the same access to capital as men, their profits could grow by at least 25%. The goal of the WEE Policy is to ensure that 60 per cent of women entrepreneurs benefit from Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises financing opportunities, cooperatives, and digital tools, while also supporting their transition from informal to formal enterprise.”

The WEE report affirmed that education remains one of the most powerful tools to break cycles of poverty, but too many girls are still left behind.

It read, “Only nine per cent of girls from the poorest households in Northern Nigeria attend secondary school, and girls account for 63% of out-of-school children. Early marriage affects 43 per cent of girls, cutting short their education and future opportunities. These gaps reinforce inequality and limit long-term economic participation. But the potential is huge; investing in girls’ education and technical training builds not just personal confidence but national development. Increasing access can boost human capital, reduce child marriage, and drive economic growth.

“The goal is to increase the number of girls in secondary schools in the poorest areas by 20% over five years, with at least 70 per cent completing school. By 2030, 50 per cent of women should have access to vocational training, particularly in high-demand sectors like tech, enterprise, and green jobs.”