#IDWGS Essay - Gender Inclusivity as a Strategy to Drive Scientific Innovation and Creativity by Zeenat Magaji

Introduction 

Nigeria’s estimated female population is put at 109.2 million (about 49.5%) of a total population of 221 million. This means that female constitutes nearly half of the total population of Nigeria. Unfortunately, this large female population is excluded from several facets of socio-economic activities. This exclusion means that females do not play any significant role in their own individual growth and they contribute minimally to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). 

One of the areas that this exclusion is well pronounced is in the area of innovation and creativity as it relates to intellectual property. The exclusion discourages innovation and creativity among females and, economically, it prevents them from benefiting from the global economic benefits of innovation and creativity. 

Considering what a large women and girls population can contribute to individual and national growth, their exclusion from innovation and creativity networks remains curious. However, the effects of the exclusion are too serious and should not be swept under the carpet. 

Intellectual Property 

This means assets that are nonphysical (intangible) in nature. Such assets that are protected by law from being used or implemented by a third party without the consent of the owner may be owned by an individual or an organization. All over the world, Intellectual Property is normally covered by a body of laws that are set out by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) to regulate the 

ownership and protection of Intellectual Property rights in member-states. My country, Nigeria, has domesticated several laws to administer and protect intellectual property. Among the laws are the Copyrights Act, Anti-Piracy Act and Cyber Security Act. 

Related to Intellectual Property are certain rights given to individuals or organisations to protect their creations and innovations known as Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). Intellectual Property Rights may not be infringed upon by third parties as the rights give innovators the exclusive right to bar others from stealing their work. 

Challenges of Intellectual Property Rights 

Intellectual Property rights in Nigeria face serious problems. Among them are: 

1. Low recognition of Intellectual Property rights by creators and innovators. This is the result of low awareness of the existence and functions of Intellectual Property rights.

2. There is no clear national policy on Intellectual Property rights and existing laws are obsolete laws that do not capture creation and innovation in the area of indigenous cultural and traditional practices. 

3. There is lack of effective enforcement of existing laws. For instance, cases of piracy and copyright violations of books, films and music go unchallenged are on the increase. This deny creators and innovators of their benefits as well as discourage some of them to abandon their trade. 

Some of the factors responsible for exclusion of women and girls from the creativity and innovation are:

 

(i) Socialization and social biases 

Nigerian children grow up in communities that are largely paternalistic and they grow up into adulthood with this inherited belief that women should only be seen and not heard. Paternalism limits the ability of females to compete economically with their male counterparts. 

(ii) Masculinity of Intellectual Property process 

Intellectual Property system is masculine in nature and this has excluded creativities and innovations such as art and craft as well as traditional cultural practices. By excluding these “feminine” creativities and innovations, many women and girls are barred from benefiting from profitable global Intellectual Property system,

 

(iii) School curriculum 

The number of female students who study STEM courses in tertiary institutions is low because of the myth created around science subjects as being too masculine. 

(iv) The work place 

The workforce is male-dominated due to the inherited socio-cultural and traditional practices of patriarchy. The result of this is that females do not play crucial role in determining who participates in the creativity and innovation process. 

Suggestions for increased women and girls inclusivity in scientific creativity and innovation

 

Intellectual Property Rights will give more women exclusive rights over their traditional innovations, restore financial incentives for them and make women more competitive in national affairs. For this to happen, there is need for some steps to be taken. Among them are: 

(i) Awareness of Intellectual Property Rights is still very low, so there is need to intensify awareness campaign. 

(ii) Scholarships and bursaries should be extended to women and girls who opt to study STEM courses in institutions of higher learning. There is also the need to increase space for women and girls seeking higher degrees in STEM courses. 

(iii) Having more females in the work force will improve the potential of Nigerian women and girls to become creators and innovators. Women are best placed to understand and appreciate the challenges of fellow women and they are also best placed to institute the right mechanisms to enhance the innovativeness and creativity of women. 

(iv) There is need to review existing laws and introduce new laws to protect indigenous innovations. 

(v) Intellectual Property networks should be made less masculine through recognizing and promoting indigenous traditional innovation and creativity of Nigerian women. 

Conclusion 

Despite their large numbers, women play insignificant role in the scientific innovative and creativity process. Social biases and the masculine nature of Intellectual Property process are some of the problems women face. To reverse the situation, awareness campaigns should be intensified; incentives should be provided for females to study STEM courses and laws to recognize traditional creations of women and girls should be enacted.

About the Author

I am 22 years old and a very recent graduate of Cyber Security Science