Many Nigerian women grow up believing that they simply have to accept several injustices done to them, whether it’s being denied an inheritance, losing their job after having a baby, or enduring all sorts of abuse in silence, but the law doesn’t agree. Over the years, landmark court rulings and legislation have strengthened women’s rights in ways many people still don’t know about.
1. The VAPP Act (Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act), 2015
The first federal law to ban female genital mutilation (FGM), it broadened the legal definition of rape to better reflect women’s experiences and to cover tactics male offenders use, and Section 46 established a formal legal definition of sexual harassment women can cite when reporting.
2. The Child Rights Act, 2003
This act prohibits child marriage and betrothal and defines anyone under 18 as a child who cannot legally consent to marriage.
3. Ukeje v Ukeje, 2014
The Supreme Court ruled that Igbo custom cannot prevent a daughter from inheriting her father’s estate, relying on Section 42 of the Constitution, which prohibits discrimination by sex, ethnicity, religion, or circumstances of birth.
4. Anekwe v Nweke, 2014
Decided the same day as Ukeje v Ukeje, the court held that a widow cannot be denied inheritance for failing to bear a son.
5. Rivers State Inheritance Law, 2022
This law converted the Ukeje v Ukeje ruling into state legislation, giving women in Rivers State a written law to rely on rather than only a court precedent.
6. Married Women’s Property Act (MWPA), 1882
Allows a married woman to acquire, own, and sell property in her own right, with no automatic claim by her husband over property she owns separately.
7. Matrimonial Causes Act (MCA) Section 70, 2004
This act allows a wife to claim financial maintenance from her husband while still married, during divorce proceedings, or after separation.
8. Labour Act Section 54, 2004
Entitles women to 12 weeks of maternity leave, with at least six weeks taken after delivery, and at least 50 per cent pay for those who have worked six months or more.
9. Labour Act Maternity Protection Clause, 2004
The clause prevents employers from dismissing a woman or serving her termination notice while she is on maternity leave.
10. Section 72 of the Matrimonial Causes Act (MCA), 2004
This act allows a wife to ask the court for a fair share of property after divorce, taking her tangible contributions into account.
