In many African societies, women’s participation in development efforts, decision-making and politics is low. The national average of women’s political participation in Nigeria has remained 6.7% in elective and appointive positions, which is far below the global average of 22.5%, Africa regional average of 23.4% and West African sub-regional average of 15%.
Studies show that increasing women’s participation in politics leads to greater investments in education, and companies with female board representation boast higher returns on investment.

Research also suggests that gender balance in the political sphere promotes gender balance in the workforce, which could double global GDP growth by 2025. Diatom Impact believes that investing in girls and women creates a ripple effect that yields multiple benefits, not only for individual women, but also for families, communities, and countries. We must activate and engage women in the political process if we want to build resilient, productive, and healthy communities.

In July this year, Diatom Impact, a member of Platform Capital Group, supported ElectHER with a grant of $50,000 in perpetuity. Founded by Abosede George-Ogan and Ibijoke Faborode, ElectHER is a non-partisan end-to-end women’s political advancement organization bridging inequality gaps in Nigerian politics by addressing the under-representation of Nigerian women in elective office through behavioural change communications, skills development, human capital mobilization and campaign financing, with an end-goal to enable capable women to competitively Decide, Run, and Win elections.

ElectHER is on a mission to support 1000 women to run for office in 2023. The funds donated by Diatom Impact and Platform Capital will go towards the setting up and launching the ElectHER Academy which will provide access to quality online and offline training for at least 1,000 women interested in politics.

As part of Platform Capital Group, Diatom Impact- research and impact-focused organization – is focused on 5 areas critical to economic and social development: health, education, entrepreneurship, gender equality and quality of life.

Highlighting the work being done in the area of gender equality, Dr. Akintoye Akindele said, “The great work that ElectHER is doing is aligned with our gender equality goals at Platform Capital. Promoting women into leadership and supporting their participation in politics, government, and business across all levels of society is key if we want to ensure the Africa of our dreams. Women are the cornerstone of the society and data has proven that empowering a woman has a greater net effect on the community. We must embrace this and continue to uplift women for the development of our continent.”

About Diatom Impact

Diatom Impact is an impact-focused, investment and research organization committed to being a global change agent through collaborative partnerships with communities, corporations, and governments to create solutions that solve entrenched development challenges. We are committed to changing the narrative and practice of development and investment across the African continent.

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