Nicola Sturgeon has backed calls for Scotland's most celebrated women to be commemorated across the country in sculpture - just as the nation's most iconic men have been.

Feminist campaigners are currently leading efforts to see more statues of the unsung heroines of Scottish history erected.

Adele Patrick, the founder of Glasgow Women's Library, said a series of sculptures and memorials should be built to commemorate the work of great Scottish women.

Despite a raft of prominent women in the arts, science and public life there are just 20 statues honouring their lives across the country. There are hundreds of statues to men.

The First Minister said: “Celebrating the achievements of Scots women is not about patting ourselves on the back – it’s fundamental to our future.

“I recently attended the opening of the new Glasgow Women’s Library building in the city’s east end – a wonderful resource celebrating the lives, histories and achievements of women from around the world. Lives and stories which might otherwise be overlooked or neglected.

“And thanks in large part to a campaign run by the Library, the Suffragette Oak in Kelvingrove Park was recently voted Scotland’s favourite tree. Planted almost 100 years ago to mark the fact that women had gained the right to vote, it has grown and flourished in the same way as the movement behind it.

“A century on, I’m proud that politics in Scotland has taken huge strides towards gender equality – not only am I the first female First Minister, but we’ve got the first female Presiding Officer and the two main opposition parties are also led by women. We’ve also got a gender balanced cabinet – one of very few in the world.”

While in the political sphere there has been much success in facilitating gender equality, in other sectors there has been less progress.

A persistent pay gap of 11 per cent remains between full-time male and female employees and Scottish boardrooms are still dominated by men.

While certain industries, such as health, education and public administration, are segregated and roughly 80 per cent of administrative, secretarial and public service jobs are filled by women.

“I believe passionately in equality, and I want it to be a reality for every girl and young woman in Scotland that if they are good enough and work hard enough they can achieve their dreams,” Sturgeon added.

“The more we highlight the achievements of women of Scotland’s past, the more encouragement we give to women of Scotland’s future.”