Challenges hindering female participation in politics as expressed by female politicians in the federal capital territory, Abuja: implications for counselling

Abstract

The study challenges hindering female participation in politics as expressed by female politicians in the federal capital territory, Abuja, Nigeria. The research design adopted for this study was descriptive survey. The respondents were 210 female politicians selected from six Area Councils of the FCT using a proportionate sampling technique. The “Challenges of Female Participation in Politics”(COFPIP)Questionnaire was administered to the respondents to collect relevant data. Percentages and mean scores were used for the demographic section and the research questions were answered while t-test and ANOVA statistics at 0.05 level of significance were used to test the null hypotheses. The findings showed that women politicians in the FCT were faced with educational, religious, economic and socio-cultural challenges. Educational challenge however, was rated higher than all others. Finally, the challenges facing women politicians did not differ on the basis of marital status, religious background, location and educational qualification. It was therefore concluded that women politicians in the study area were confronted with a number of challenges. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended that political parties, Government, Electoral body (INEC) and politicians to ensure that the electoral system and political culture are women-friendly, and that level playing  ground for women to participate actively in politics. Women too should strive to be educated and be economically empowered enough to participate actively in politics.

Keywords: Resolve, Challenges, Counselling, Female Participation, Politics, Federal Capital Territory