*Launches advisory council on support for female gender
*Neem Foundation says discrimination is clog in wheel of any nation
Deji Elumoye and Michael Olugbode in Abuja
President Muhammadu Buhari has launched High-Level Advisory Council on Nigeria’s Support for Women and Girls, calling for upscaling of efforts for more inclusion of women in development policies and projects.
At the launch of Advisory Council, Adolescent Girls’ Initiative for Learning and Empowerment Project and National Women’s Economic Empowerment Policy Dialogue at the State House, Abuja, yesterday, the president said the three initiatives would target reduction of poverty, and building of a sustainable economy.
According to him, “This is what we promised to all Nigerians – including our women and girls when our party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), was elected in 2015. I am proud to say that our government has delivered over the past eight years.
“The wellbeing of women and girls remain a pivotal indicator of how well any Nation is doing in driving her developmental plans. I am proud of the tremendous progress that has been made to emphasise the needs of Nigerian women and girls into national economic planning, policy development, public programming, and public financial management.
“While there has been progress, we are not unmindful of the gaps associated with harnessing the available resources of government, the innovation and efficiency of the private sector, and the technical expertise of our social and development sector partners to drive women and girls empowerment outcomes.”
The President noted that coordination had remained a key gap in the efforts to improve livelihoods and democratise opportunities for women and girls.
“It is expected that the High-Level Advisory Council on Nigeria’s Support for Women and Girls, which I am very proud to inaugurate today, therefore, comes as an answered prayer to bridge this identified gap.
“As this Council takes off, I want to charge it with the mandate to drive all round collaboration and action towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 5: Gender Equality between now and 2030,” the president added.
In her welcome address, Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen, noted that the inauguration was evidence of Buhari’s commitment to the empowerment of women and girls in Nigeria, adding that the President had in December 2022, approved the formation of a Presidential High Level Advisory Council on women’s support to women in Nigeria.
According to her, the Council would provide strategic guidance, oversight, policy and support to the government-led gender equality initiatives as well as advise Nigeria’s financial and technical partners on critical areas of support for women and girls in Nigeria.
Meanwhile, the Executive Director, Neem Foundation, Dr Fatima Akilu, has said the discrimination and disempowerment of women and girls was a clog in the wheel of progress of a nation.
Speaking at a Stakeholders’ Forum in Abuja, organised by Neem and Ford foundations to Review Access and Response to Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) in Northwest Nigeria, Akilu said, “The discrimination and disempowerment of women and girls threatens democracy, peace and security and is an obstacle to sustainable development. It weakens social cohesion, harmony, and justice and put a heavy burden on national economies.”
She, however, said, “Despite the various challenges and gaps, progress has been seen in recent years, which is attributed to the leadership of many stakeholders at the Abuja meeting.”
Akilu told the gathering of stakeholders in Sokoto, Kaduna and Kano, that, “From being hidden in a culture of silence and impunity, eliminating violence against women has become a national priority, supported by a solid national and international framework.”
Sokoto State Commissioner for Women and Children Affairs, Hajiya Kulu Abdullahi Sifawa, commended the Neem and Ford foundations for a job well done in the execution of the 18 month-funded project: “Prevent and Protect; Strengthening access and response to GBV in Sokoto, Kaduna, and Kano State.”
