The federal government has promised to collaborate with the National Council of Women Societies (NCWS) to take the country to the next level in terms of development.
The Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Paulen Tallen, made the promise on Wednesday in Abuja when members of NCWS led by the president, Mrs Gloria Shoda, paid the minister a visit.
She said that women had the capacity to address the insecurity that was currently ravaging the country.
According to her, women are mothers and wives to these youths and men that are causing this problem.
“We need to talk and pray to them for God to take away the evil pushing them into these evil crimes.
“We cannot afford to fail as mothers of the nation; we need your corporation to succeed.
“We also need to pray for the president and his cabinet because the prayer of a mother can go a long way to rewrite wrongs,’’ she said.
Tallen promised to restore the NCWS subvention from the ministry, noting that this would go a long way to help the council to run its programmes.
She said that the ministry would work hand in hand with the NCWS to better the lives of women.
Tallen said that her administration would focus on girl-child education, mentorship and support to young ones, especially those interested in politics.
Earlier, Shoda appealed to the minister to reinstate the usual subvention given to the council by the ministry.
“The restoration of the subvention will go a long way to underscore the work we want to carry out in the 774 local government areas and the FCT.
“The council’s role in society is critical to the empowerment of women. Most times, we find it arduous carrying out our aims and objectives without the necessary support from the ministry.
“As far as work goes, NCWS certainly has several areas of national concerns we feel the ministry can take a firm stand on and inspire a platform for joint action.
“These include gender-based violence, out-of-school girls, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and women’s empowerment, among other issues,’’ she said.
Shoda said that the council was particularly happy that a member of the NCWS Board of Trustees would drive women’s issues for the next four years.
She said that the minister was coming into the ministry with great wealth of knowledge and experience to fight the cause of women.
The president of NCWS said that the council would host all the seven female ministers to ensure that their appointments “receive the recognition it deserves’’. (NAN)
