Ola Obadala, vice president of the UK-based Chartered Institute of Building Industry (CIOB), says early exposure and a supportive environment are key to encouraging more women to work in the construction industry.
Obadala was educated at the Federal Government College for Girls in Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria, where technical subjects were a compulsory part of the curriculum.
“In the first year, all girls were required to come to school with a drawing board, grid, technical pencils and drawing paper. On the reopening day, they would be checked at the school gate to make sure no one was left behind,” she says. “Alongside maths and science, we also learned drafting, woodworking, metalworking and rudimentary skills. All of this was taught in dedicated workshops equipped with appropriate tools and equipment.”
For the girls’ secondary school, this was empowering, say executives. Her early experiences gave her hands-on experience with construction tools and principles of the built environment, giving her hands-on, creative, and confidence-building skills. “It taught us in our formative years that construction was not a male-only preserve, but a field where women could thrive.”
Obadala said schools can play a vital role in equipping girls with the confidence and technical skills to become future architects, engineers, project managers and field leaders.
But she admits there is still a long way to go to close the skills gap and encourage more girls to enter the industry, both in Africa and around the world.
Women make up just over 10% of the construction workforce in South Africa, and this statistic is similar in many countries around the world, according to an April 2023 report by Ryder Levett Bucknall, a global independent construction, real estate and management consultancy. The report says this disparity is often due to a lack of access to education and training, as well as deep-seated cultural biases that view construction as a “man’s job.”
Meanwhile, women make up just 3% of the construction industry workforce in Kenya, according to a May 2025 report from Canada’s International Development Research Center (IDRC).
Globally, women are thought to make up just 11% of the construction workforce in the United States, while in Europe this number drops to 9%.
“Raising awareness, providing broader technical education, providing more funding and tackling stereotypes remain important,” Obadala says.
The CIOB Research on Attitudes towards Careers in Construction, published in early 2025, surveyed 2,000 16-24 year olds in the UK and found that two-thirds (68%) of young people had a positive view of careers in construction. However, 53% said the industry was not welcoming to women, and 47% said construction was not included in the career advice they received during their education.
Obadala said that while initiatives aimed at encouraging girls to pursue careers in the construction industry are increasing, progress also requires continued investment in targeted education that not only increases awareness of opportunities but also builds both the general academic foundation and specialized built environment skills essential for entering apprenticeships, degrees and professional practice.
Ms. Obadala’s own academic background in architecture began in college with Women in Architecture and the Built Environment, a women-only foundation program that provided women with individualized education and opportunities to explore the built environment in a protected environment that fostered confidence and curiosity.
deal with stereotypes
She opines that career advisors and mentors need to highlight the wide range of opportunities in construction, in addition to field-based roles. “We have more than 150 career paths, including leadership roles in architecture, engineering, project management, site supervision, and other fields that require creativity, technical expertise, and strategic thinking,” Obadala says. “Many of these include new technologies and innovative approaches to design and construction.”
Changing the narrative is also important for field-based roles, she says. In field-based roles, there is a widespread perception that women are not suited for physical or technical work, such as ‘instrument-handling’ or field-based leadership positions.
“This brought me back to Nigeria, where I observed women having a significant presence on the construction industry floor,” says Obadala. “Before machines became widespread for tasks such as pouring concrete, it was common for groups of women to work on constructing concrete decks for residential buildings. Teams of highly skilled women efficiently carried freshly mixed concrete in pans, climbed wooden stairs, expertly poured the material, and completed entire decks in one day. This work is still occasionally done by female university students to earn extra income.”
In August 2025, at the 6th Empowerment and Recognition of Women in Construction (ERWIC) Awards, South African Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Dean McPherson emphasized that women are part of the country’s infrastructure plan.
“Our goal and my goal as (the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure) is to advocate and support women to compete and win in the open market because they are capable, qualified and competitive,” McPherson said. “I believe that it is entirely possible and I intend to advocate strongly for the remainder of my term.
“Every project we complete creates jobs, stimulates local suppliers, and leaves behind infrastructure that enables further growth. When women succeed at leading construction sites, the benefits only increase.”
In Kenya, Dalberg Research and non-profit social enterprise Builder are working to develop a new Kenyan building code that ensures gender considerations. Among the issues they are raising are the need to impose a minimum proportion of women employed on construction projects, the obligation for employers to provide facilities and equipment suitable for women, and the need to create a system where women can safely report incidents of sexual harassment.
Tatu Gatere, CEO of Buildher, believes the culture surrounding women in construction is finally starting to change. Her goal is to increase the representation of women in Kenya’s construction industry from 3% to 10% over the next 10 years.
In conclusion, Mr. Obadara answers the questions frequently asked at career festivals:
“Your creativity, grit, multitasking skills, strategic thinking and leadership skills are invaluable assets to our industry. Whether you contribute through building design, cost control, planning, leading teams or implementing new technology, your involvement will have a lasting impact and help shape the built environment for generations to come.”
“Today, I stand here not only as CIOB Vice President Ola Obadala, but also as a symbol of endless possibilities for aspiring girls who want to one day lend their voices to this cause. I represent resilience, equality, diversity, and a beacon of hope that this is possible and you are worth it.”
Top photo: Female construction team (Source: Yuri Arcurs | Dreamstime)
