As the world marks International Women’s Day 2026, stakeholders are spotlighting an often-overlooked frontier—Nigeria’s heavy manufacturing sector, where women are still pushing to break long-standing barriers.
While women make up a significant share of the manufacturing workforce, their roles are largely concentrated in light industries like food processing, textiles, and packaging, with sectors such as steel, cement, oil servicing, shipbuilding, and large-scale construction still dominated by men.
Industry leaders say structural challenges—limited access to financing, collateral requirements, workplace culture, and fewer leadership opportunities—continue to hold women back. Ngozi Oyewole of Commonwealth Business Women Africa noted that many women struggle to secure large industrial loans due to strict collateral demands and complex financing processes.
Experts also point to a “leaky pipeline” in the sector, where women enter manufacturing but struggle to advance into management and executive roles. Funlayo Bakare-Okeowo of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry said women are often confined to support roles instead of technical areas like engineering and plant management—positions that usually lead to leadership.
Stakeholders are now calling for policy reforms, gender-inclusive financing, procurement quotas, and dedicated industrial clusters to help women scale up into heavy industry. They argue that excluding women from major industrial sectors could slow Nigeria’s economic growth and industrial ambitions.
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