David Cameron is accompanying a high-level trade delegation to South Africa and Nigeria this week. When it was pointed out by some people on Twitter that this delegation contained no women, other people rather tartly suggested that this would hardly be of interest or concern to African states.
How wrong they are! Many African nations take the issues of both women’s representation and their economic activity much more seriously than we do in the UK. In fact, they tend to put us to shame.
Consider, for instance, ministerial appointments. Only 18% of David Cameron’s Cabinet is female – the same level as after Gordon Brown’s last reshuffle. There are no Liberal Democrat women in the cabinet, and of the four Conservatives one (Baroness Warsi) is unelected.
Then have a look at the South African Government, where 39% (14 out of 36) Cabinet ministers are women, including those with responsibility for Defence, International Relations, Science and Technology, Mining, and Home Affairs.
Or Nigeria, where President Jonathan Goodluck has just appointed 13 women Ministers (out of 40), and is now subject to criticism for not having met his own target of 35% women ministers. Before the 2010 election David Cameron pledged that 33% of his Cabinet would be female by the end of his first administration; Goodluck’s pledge was about the start of his, and, at 32.5% with a few appointments still to make, he may yet meet his target.
Nigerian women are heading up some of the key ministries including Petroleum Resources, Industry, the Niger Delta, Education and Land Reform. Not to mention Finance and the Economy, whose new Minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, was managing director of the World Bank, and is the source of the immortal comment ‘I keep my ego in my handbag’.
There is also a (female) Minister for Affirmative Action, something which would be unthinkable in the UK, because the very existence of the post suggests recognition of the problem, which the UK is reluctant to admit in a serious way. Yet there clearly is one – South Africa comes fourth in the international league table for the percentage of women in Parliament (44.5%), and whilst the level in Nigeria (4%) is woeful, there is at least a recognition that something needs to be done. And it is also true that, at 22%, the UK Parliament is closer to the Nigerian position than the South African.
Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has also said that ‘Investment in women is smart economics. Investment in girls is even smarter economics because they are at the centre of development’, and this is something David Cameron and his delegation might like to bear in mind. Africa is an economic powerhouse for women. In many countries there are more women entrepreneurs than men, and women’s incomes are growing faster. The UN believes that women hold the key to economic growth, whilst the United States are prioritising supporting women’s businesses in the developing world. In the UK, the Federation of Small Business believes that we have a lot to learn from what is happening elsewhere in terms of supporting women in the economy.
However, we’re unlikely to learn it. UK trade delegations tend to want to sell, not listen, and the UK government does not want to be taught how to increase women’s political representation by ‘developing’ nations. This is a pity. By turning up with an all-male trade delegation David Cameron looks, in both countries, both out of date and out of touch.
Once again the commentariat handily forgets the government is in coalition for their own means.
Lib Dems were the only party to stand less women as candidates in 2010 than in 2005 & Cameron was the instigator of increasing Conservative women MPs from 19 to 49 – no mean feat in itself.
He had a very short list of LD women that could have become ministers so that seriously affected what he could do at the start of a parliament. He set a goal of end of parliament so the new intake could be included. You can hardly make a new MP a minister the day after they come into parliament!
There’s a lot that still can be done but give some credit where it’s due.