Women in rural communities of Anambra State have been urged to empower themselves with productive skills to enable them become self-reliant so as to overcome economic and family challenges.
Executive Director, Whispering Hope Africa Initiative, Nkechi Udegboka, gave this advice during a workshop on mentorship programme, organised for women in Oraifite community, Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State, on Tuesday.
The event, themed: ‘Invest in Women, Don’t Spend on Women,’ was facilitated by Sir Emeka Offor Foundation, in partnership with WHAI, with the aim of empowering women in rural communities on various skills acquisition.
The organisers said the mentoring was also part of activities to celebrate the women as part of International Women’s Day activities, where over 1,000 women, drawn from Ihiala, Ekwusigo and Ogbaru local government areas were involved.
Udegboka noted that every day is for the celebration of hardworking women, not just with fanfares, but by engaging them with mentorship programme to equip them in surmounting any challenges.
She said, “There is need to start empowering the women in productive skills because they are the home builders; gone are the days when a woman should depend totally on her husband. Women should empower themselves. They should not limit themselves that a man will do everything for them. When they are empowered, they will play their family and societal roles effectively. You have a role to play in the family, when a man contributes, you also contribute.
“The women are passing through a lot at the moment and when we look at the action plans of the women and their development plan, we found out that they need mentorship programme to grow and that is why we are kick-starting a mentorship programme known as ‘Mentoring Globally Walk.’
“We have also selected young widows, who are entrepreneurial-inclined and looked into their career and if they have challenges, they would be given proper orientation to enable them accelerate in their business.”
Udegboka also lectured the women on various types of gender-based violence like physical violence, psychological violence, sexual violence and harmful traditional practices, saying that UNICEF data revealed that one in every four Nigerian girls are sexually assaulted before the age of 18.
The Coordinator, Sir Emeka Offor Foundation, Tony Umeh, in his speech, urged the participants to embrace the teachings and apply them in their various endeavours as well as teach others around them.
The participants commended the foundation for the initiative, saying that they learnt a lot during the event.
