The Nigerian Senate has insensitively sparked another global outrage by removing Kogi Central lawmaker Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from the country’s delegation to the 70th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women currently taking place in New York, replacing her with a male colleague.
The global gathering, which runs from March 9 to March 19 at the United Nations headquarters in New York, focuses on advancing gender equality and improving access to justice for women and girls around the world. Member countries are expected to send official delegations to participate in discussions and negotiations on women-focused policies.
However, Nigeria’s delegation list sparked controversy after Akpoti-Uduaghan was excluded despite earlier indications that she would attend the conference. She was replaced by Ondo Central senator Adeniyi Adegbonmire.
The matter first surfaced on February 25 during a meeting of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, where Akpoti-Uduaghan complained that she had been removed from the list of delegates despite fulfilling the required documentation. According to the senator, the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs had initially invited her to join Nigeria’s team and requested the photo page of her international passport, which she said she submitted promptly.
At the time, the chairperson of the Senate Committee on Women Affairs, Ireti Kingibe, reportedly assured her that her name had been recommended for the trip after two other female senators declined the opportunity to attend the event.
Despite those assurances, a later communication confirmed that the final delegation from the Senate would consist of Kingibe and Adegbonmire, leaving Akpoti-Uduaghan off the list.
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The decision has drawn criticism from some observers and gender advocates, who note that the event is dedicated to women’s rights and empowerment, making the replacement of one of the few female senators with a male lawmaker particularly contentious. Nigeria already has one of the lowest levels of female representation in parliament globally, with women occupying fewer than five percent of seats in the National Assembly.
The development has also triggered debate within the Senate, with reports describing a growing row over how the country selected its representatives for the international women-focused forum.
The Senate leadership has not publicly provided a detailed explanation for the final change in the delegation list.
