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• Declares, “If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.”
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, New York
In a riveting session at the 2026 Goals Lounge themed “Staying at the Table: Women Leading Through Change” on Wednesday during the 70th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70), Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, led a powerhouse discussion on shattering barriers and sustaining leadership amid evolving global challenges.
Joined by Filipino-American author, philanthropist, and business icon Loida Lewis, and moderated by journalist Karen Davila, the trio unpacked personal journeys of triumph over systemic obstacles, emphasising self-belief, service, and unyielding values as antidotes to doubt and discrimination.
The event, held at the UN Headquarters, drew global attention for its raw calls to action, with Sulaiman-Ibrahim positioning herself as a beacon for Nigerian and African women pushing for gender equity.
Sulaiman-Ibrahim opened the dialogue by crediting her ascent to unwavering self-belief and persistence. “I think it starts with self-belief. Because if you don’t believe in yourself, you cannot dream it. And once you can dream it, you can do it,” she declared, responding to Davila’s question on breaking barriers in a nation where female ministers remain atypical. She elaborated on the grind of politics: “Showing up. Because that’s the most difficult part of achieving success. Showing up. Because when you show up, you go up. But sometimes you show up and you show nothing is happening, and then you want to stay outside that particular circle that you should be.”
Drawing from her privileged yet egalitarian upbringing in Abuja, the minister revealed how her father’s gender-neutral parenting fueled her ambition. “In my home, there was no male or female. Everybody was just a child that needed love and that needed to believe in themselves. So, I grew up believing in myself, believing that I could do whatever I dreamt about,” she shared, contrasting her story with tales of childhood trauma. This foundation, she insisted, underpins her daily leadership: “Leadership is service. It’s not about you. It’s about the purpose, about the calling.”
On her part, Loida Lewis, in her 80s and author of bestsellers like Why Should Guys Have All the Fun? An Asian American Story of Love, Marriage, Children, and Running a Billion-Dollar Business Empire—available on Amazon—recounted her audacious 1969 passage of the New York Bar without U.S. study, leveraging her UP College of Law credentials. “Your merchandise is in your head,” she asserted, dismissing insecurity: “If I were saying, ‘Oh, I’m a girl, I’m a woman, I’m this and that,’ then you already keep a limit to yourself.” Raised by a father who told her, “Lloyda, you can do anything,” Lewis excelled as valedictorian and cum laude, viewing the bar exam as “natural.”
Lewis’s leadership extended to suing U.S. Immigration in 1975 for gender, race, and national origin discrimination after rejection despite top qualifications. After three years, a judge ruled in her favour, awarding back payment: “She has been discriminated against.” Married to the late Reginald Lewis, America’s first Black billionaire, she said she embraced complementary roles—“He is the CEO. I’m COO”—while rooting her resilience in Christian faith and Zen meditation: “Being quiet, just being present… If my mind is too noisy, you won’t hear yourself. Neither can I hear God.”
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Both women framed leadership as values-driven service amid corruption and doubt. Sulaiman-Ibrahim stressed prioritising national interest: “You have to put people first… What drives me is the purpose. When you know that you’ve been put on Earth for something.”
On temptation in government, she cited her untainted father: “Once you get your values right… How do you want the story to play out? That’s the kind of story I would like to leave for my children.” Lewis echoed this, navigating her high-profile marriage by excelling in wife, motherhood, and professional roles: “Each time in our life, there is a way to show your leadership… Just keep on to your values.”
Addressing ageism, Sulaiman-Ibrahim flipped the script as one of Nigeria’s youngest cabinet members: “When there are women in the room, if there are 10 men and just two women, what do you see? A hundred women.” She called for “she for she” solidarity over jealousy: “We need to strengthen the women’s agency… The space is enough for everyone… You don’t need a BBL. You don’t need Brazilian hair. You just have to be you.”
Lewis, vibrant at 80, quipped: “Age is just a number, and mine is unlisted… I never think of age. In fact, I think I’m 40.”
Sulaiman-Ibrahim envisioned a selfless future: “Love yourself. You should love yourself with the same love you have for others… We have to master the arts of working together, accepting each other.”
Lewis concluded: “If an opportunity comes, you take it… Because if we’re not at the table, we are the menu.” Davila urged practical steps calling for mentorship of women: “Are you mentoring at least one woman?”
The session, celebrating women’s barrier-breaking amid global change, reinforced Nigeria’s minister as a rising force, her words igniting a blueprint for enduring female leadership.
