The House of Representatives is proposing the creation of 302 new legislative seats across the national and state assemblies exclusively for women and Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) as part of the ongoing review of the 1999 Constitution.
The proposals are contained in two constitutional amendment bills sponsored by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu. The bills, which have passed second reading and are now before the House Committee on Constitution Review, aim to address the underrepresentation of women and PWDs in legislative bodies across Nigeria.
One bill proposes 86 additional seats at the National Assembly—12 for PWDs and 74 for women. The second bill seeks the creation of 216 seats in state Houses of Assembly, including 108 for women and 108 for PWDs.
If passed, the new seats will take effect after the 2027 general elections.
Abbas’ bill, titled *HB.1931*, proposes one Senate and one House of Representatives seat per geopolitical zone for PWDs, totaling 12 seats, and three PWD seats in each of the 36 state assemblies. It also recommends the creation of one councillorship position for PWDs in each of Nigeria’s 774 local governments.
The PWD seats in the National Assembly would rotate among the states within each geopolitical zone every four years.
Kalu’s bill, *HB.1349*, seeks to amend sections 48, 49, 71, 77, 91, and 117 of the Constitution to create an extra senatorial and House of Representatives seat in each state and the FCT for women, bringing the total to 37 additional seats in both chambers.
Similarly, the bill proposes that each state House of Assembly will have three additional seats—one per senatorial district—reserved for women. This measure is described as temporary and would be reviewed after 16 years (or four general elections) to determine whether to retain, modify, or abolish it.
The amendments clarify that the reserved seats do not restrict women from contesting other general seats, allowing them to participate fully in all electoral contests.
According to the bill’s sponsors, these proposed changes are aimed at increasing inclusivity and ensuring greater political representation for marginalized groups in Nigeria.
