Group to empower women, students, others in skills

Christian Empowerment Forum (CEF), a non-governmental organisation, says it is set to empower no fewer than 500 women with cash grants and skills acquisition in its 2020 Gender Empowerment Project (GEP).

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Mr Ifunnaya Ogbonnaya, Executive Director of the group, said this in an interview with our correspondent.

Ogbonnaya said that the empowerment project was part of the organisations programme to encourage financial independence and to boost self-reliance.

He said that the empowerment was also in line with the recently celebrated International Women’s Day (IWD) on March 8.

Ogbonnaya said that IWD should not just be to remind and mount pressure on governments and stakeholders on the need to protect and preserve the rights and dignity of women and girls alone.

“The IWD should also serve as a call for women and girls to seek financial independence and self-sustenance and reliance.

“The women and girls to be empowered will be selected from registered and recognised market women union, and identified female hospital patients in government hospitals having difficulties settling their bills.

“Also secondary school female students in project clubs, especially clubs that requires inventions and creation like JETS clubs, science and tech clubs, and others will be empowered with skills.

“Those in the prison will be selected by the prison officials from those on minimal period of imprisonment.

“This is to ensure that after their term in prison or in the Correctional Centres, they could be integrated back into the society with an ability to positively add to nation building,’’ he said.

The executive director urged women and girls to not just strive for equality, but also strive to be support systems to men who are championing good courses in various spheres of life.

He advised women and girls to look beyond the act of feminism and propagate women to women motivation and empowerment forum by creating healthier environment for the female child to grow and learn self-sustenance and reliance.