By Daniel Njienue, News/Comments, August 13,2021
LAGOS-African Women Foundation for Nation building (WINB Africa) held its one day-workshop titled, Education First Series Empowerment Project in the New Normal, during the week, got accolade as participants were charged to remain committed to the growth of women in Africa.
The President of the foundation, Dr Bukky Bello Jaiyesimi while speaking with the press highlighted the vision of the foundation, such as to support African women to play significant roles in nation building , raising and supporting women leaders in creating consciousness for women inclusiveness in the development of human capacity. She has however in her address reiterated what the foundation has done and what next:
Our focus remains in the WINB roundtable, which is a discussion we hold monthly to different sectors of the economy building condition of progress made, and we bring it to the forefront of the burner for women, youth, and men to benefit from. We also have definite challenge, this we do monthly where we reach out to orphanages around the continent of Africa, with the help of our suburbs. We also have a project whereby we empower men, women, youth in skill acquisition.
We also talk about organic product production, that’s project Sapphire. Then we also have the project back to school. According to UNICEF, in this century, Africa is going to record the largest number of pupils that are out of school. What are we doing about it? Are we just sitting down folding our hands and watching this happen? No, we don’t want that to happen in the continent of Africa, Not even West Africa or Nigeria. That’s why we’re adding our efforts to the federal government and the state governments to see what we can do to bring these fore bills (pupils/children) off the streets to the school, and we have the education first series, which is the seminar and workshop that you’re here for today.
L-R, Dr. Akinkurolere, (4th), Dr. Bukky Jaiyesimi, (5th), Dr. Ukaegbu, Dr. Bamgbala, and other members of the panelist
Our fundamentals and tenets as a foundation is education. Every woman in the continent of Africa must be educated. But we also know that not every woman will have the four walls of the classrooms, in a lifetime. So we have created education facilities for women that have been in the favelas of classrooms, and the ones that are not able to go there to come to this forum and this workshop which we hold twice a year to engage the African women and bring the knowledge of what’s going on, part time on the continent and in the economies of the world. In this workshop which is our seminar we discuss them and of course we come up with a communique, which will present to the government, and to other NGOs and other civil societies that are willing to be on this crusade of bringing women to the fore, because we have always been in nation building. And I will say that every generation of women should carry on this act of crafting which is called nation building.
We didn’t make a choice to be in nation building as women but we were born into it. As I did explain in my welcome address, we found ourselves in it, so we must live up to it. There are different sectors of the economy building conditions across Africa. Every woman is involved in one or the other. So we must do all it takes to make sure that it works well for us. Remember we have children growing up, and we’ll be in this economy
In her keynote address, Princess (Dr) Adejoke Orelope Adefulire, the Senior Special Assistant to the President (SDG) who was represented by Dr. Mrs Ifeyinwa Nnamchi Ukaegbu, stated that the Federal government is working very hard on its own part to ensure that education is made easy and affordable for every girl child in the society as a means of promoting gender equality and implementation of the sustainable development goals agenda (SDG) in Nigeria. “The Office has been embarking in many commendable and impactful project and program, these includes education, and health care services provisions across the country, as well as life skill development initiative”
Continuing, Adefulire, noted that she has commissioned 120 bed for mother and child hospital in Lagos early last year before COVID-19 pandemic to reduce the number of women that died during childbirth and reduce the number of infants that die before the age of five.
Meanwhile, in another development, Dr. (Mrs) Olanike Olufunke Akinkurolere, the Rector, Ogun State Institute of Technology, Igbesa who emphasized on empowering women and girls through financial literacy said that the role of technology in stimulating economic growth and development has made mind boggling discoveries possible and there is virtually anything one want to do now that technology is not involved. She also made a case for proper utilization of opportunities on social media to improve on lives and standard of living, advising every youths to seek knowledge through education and vocational trainees to enable them make good use of opportunities in the labour market.
Others present at the event include; Dr. Toyin Joe Bassey, the Secretary General of African women foundation for nation building (WINB AFRICA), Dr. Seun Popoola, the Coordinator, Women in Technical Education (WITED) represented by Mrs. Grace Oluyemi Braide, Madeline Mkunu, President leading women of Africa, South Africa online, Pastor Bolu Olutayo, chief operating officer, lifegate group of schools, Moronke Bamgbala, vice President Arm pension managers and other distinguish personalities. The workshop was held at the Alliance Francaise de Lagos, Mike Adenuga Centre, Ikoyi, Lagos.
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