In workplaces, community projects, and leadership panels, a persistent question arises, where are the women?

Not the ones seen every day juggling jobs, side hustles, and family life, but the ones who seem to have vanished from the workforce altogether. Women who had dreams, skills, and ambitions, but somewhere along the line, were pushed to the margins.

They haven't disappeared, the world simply hasn't made enough room for them to be fully present. Let the focus begin with something close to home care. Across many parts of the world, especially in Africa and Asia, unpaid care work is still overwhelmingly shouldered by women. There are mothers who wake at dawn, care for their children and elderly relatives, cook, clean, and only when everyone is settled, sneak in a little time to earn a living, if at all. In these conditions, formal employment becomes nearly impossible. In India, women spend about five hours daily on unpaid domestic tasks, while men average less than two. This reflects that laziness or lack of ambition are not the factors that hold women back; it is the crushing load of unpaid responsibility.

In Nigeria, a 2024 Premium Times report revealed that only 5% of private-sector employers offer any childcare support and 81% of women say they decline jobs because they have no affordable childcare. One Lagos banker returned just six weeks after birth because her employer had no crèche available, she later resigned because she was unable to juggle caregiving and work.

The workplace has not done much to ease the burden either. Many organizations still do not offer flexible working arrangements or meaningful maternity support. There was a woman who had to choose between her job and her baby because her employer simply could not "afford" to give her an extra week off. She never returned to the office. For her, and countless others, the “career break” became a career full stop.

A January 2025 BusinessDay survey found that 73% of Nigerian mothers say motherhood negatively impacted their careers. There are many hiding pregnancies to avoid being passed over for promotions.

Even when women manage to stay in or return to the workforce, they often hit a different wall: bias. It reflects in subtle ways like being passed over for promotions, left out of high-stakes meetings, or constantly being questioned for wanting both a career and a family. And then comes the so-called “motherhood penalty,” a financial dip that never quite recovers. Over time, it can be seen in smaller pensions, fewer leadership opportunities, and a deep sense of being undervalued. See full story...