Nigerian Businesswomen Demolish
Boy's Club in Oil Industry
In Nigeria, there is no glass ceiling thick enough to hinder its powerful businesswomen from dominating the oil and gas industry. The boardrooms are still predominately male, with female employees making up only 11% of its numbers and a dismal 1% in executive positions. However, business savants like the Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke are breaking new ground for women in their country. Diezani Alison-Madueke holds the office of one of the top two biggest cabinet positions in Nigeria. She is also a symbol of empowerment to women in her nation.
The oil and gas industries have been the backbone of this West African country since the 1970’s. The article titled, “Economic Growth in Nigeria- Impact of Oil Industry,” describes these industries as the “mainstay of the contemporary Nigerian economy.” As a nation, it is the third largest oil producer in Africa and 14th in the world. While men are traditionally found in these trades, the highest two positions are held by two experienced women. “‘The fact that two of the biggest cabinet positions in Nigeria, petroleum and finance, are held by women, shows how far we have come,’ she [Diezani Alison-Madueke] told at a recent meeting in Vienna, referring to the other prominent female member of the cabinet - Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala” (Nigerian Businesswomen Work to Change Face of Oil and Gas Industry).
These women are not only making their claim for their gender in Nigeria’s most important industry, but they are also creating opportunities for other female entrepreneurs to climb the corporate ladder. Nigeria is making plans to undergo the process of indigenization. Essentially, it’s changing the oil industry to offer more jobs and management positions for its citizens, male and female.
One of the factors believed to have influenced these businesswomen’s success is the tendency for women to be perceived as more trustworthy than men. According to Doctor Amy Jadesimi, the managing director of the petroleum provider Ladol, “… ‘To be honest, people trust women more,’” (Atlanta Blackstar). Diezani Alison-Madeuke goes further to emphasize what truly brought them so far in this nearly all male profession, “We are there not because we are women. We are there because of our competence as managers” (Atlanta Blackstar).
These incredible businesswomen are realizing their full potential and are refusing to stop until they reach it. Their efforts to make it possible for other women to succeed in business have not only greatly affected the community and industries in Nigeria but have also inspired women in other African countries, like Ghana and Uganda. According to Ghana Oil in their article "Women Have Prospects in Oil and Gas Industry in Africa – Geologist," “‘The emerging oil and gas industry both in Ghana and in Uganda have a lot of prospects and potentials for all women in the two countries,’ Ms. Lyoidah Kiconco, a Ugandan Geologist, said on Tuesday, ‘All the women need to do is to get the required training that will enable them to fit in the various areas available in the sectors’… Ms. Kinconco asked governments in both countries as well as oil companies to assist women to train in the oil sector so that they could also contribute their quota to the industry.”
Nigerian businesswomen are thriving in the corporate world of a dynamic and vast industry. By breaking through the gender barrier, defying outdated conventions, and working hard in their respected career, they’ve earned their spot at the top. The challenges that the first determined women faced can be more easily overcome now that they have paved the way for more skilled women to follow. The oil industry in Nigeria is not a Boy’s Club anymore.
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