Summary
This case study details the partnership between NGX Group — Africa's second largest multi-asset exchange -- and IFC in the Nigeria2Equal (N2E) program, under which NGX Group committed to lead market action towards closing the gender gap in Nigeria's private sector. The partnership with NGX Group amplified the impact of IFC's N2E program, engaging a range of stakeholders.
As the convening partner in the program, NGX Group rallied the CEOs of some of the largest listed Nigerian companies to make commitments and take actions that promote women’s participation as leaders, employees, and entrepreneurs, both internally and across their corporate value chains. These CEOs were brought together under the program to form a peer learning platform. Further, with technical assistance from IFC, NGX Group assessed its listing and disclosure guidelines, urging its listed companies for greater disclosure and tracking of their commitments.
NGX Group and IFC developed market-specific data to build a robust business case; their research assessed the current state of play and highlighted the cost to businesses from the lack of gender inclusive policies -- such as, family-friendly workplace policies and those that tackle violence, bullying and harassment at work.
NGX Group showed its commitment towards building an inclusive workplace by taking measures to advance women in its own workforce and leadership levels. With IFC support, it underwent the EDGE certification diagnostic, a third-party audit of the company's culture, policies and practices in areas such as inclusion, hiring and promotion, leadership development, equal pay, and flexible work. The Group obtained EDGE certification at Assess level and developed a plan for continued action.
This case study proves that a leading corporation with an extensive network can catalyze change at the market level and lead the charge by demonstrating its own commitment.
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