UK Conservative Party leader and Minister for Business and Trade, Kemi Badenoch, has stirred controversy following her revelation that her children cannot obtain Nigerian citizenship because of her gender. Speaking in an exclusive interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria on Sunday, Badenoch made striking comparisons between Nigerian and UK immigration systems.
In her words, “It’s virtually impossible, for example, to get Nigerian citizenship. I have that citizenship by virtue of my parents, I can’t give it to my children because I’m a woman,” she told CNN.
The minister used this claim to highlight what she describes as the UK’s “naivety” in handling immigration. “Yet loads of Nigerians come to the UK and stay for a relatively free period of time, acquire British citizenship. We need to stop being naive,” she added.
Badenoch also pushed back against the idea of migrants recreating cultural enclaves in the UK, saying such behavior wouldn’t be tolerated in countries like Nigeria. When Zakaria asked if she would accept the idea of a Nigerian immigrant creating a “mini-Nigeria” in Britain, Badenoch swiftly responded, “That is not right. Nigerians would not tolerate that. That’s not something that many countries would accept.”
Her comments have sparked mixed reactions online, with some Nigerians agreeing with her stance, while others criticized her for oversimplifying a complex legal and cultural issue. Nigeria’s nationality law, which limits the ability of female citizens to transmit citizenship to their children under certain conditions, has long been a point of contention for gender equality advocates.
As the UK continues to tighten its immigration rules, Badenoch’s comments reflect the growing debate around citizenship, identity, and the integration of immigrant communities in multicultural societies.
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