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Adzigbli Nana Ama Comfort is a skilled carpenter, a not so common field that women thread. All the way from Ghana.  She is a furniture architect and designer who had earlier wanted to be lawyer.

Adzigbli is the CEO and founder of Namas Decor GH. Her company offers services such as 3D mirrors, Beddings, Curtains, Furniture, Tiling & plumbing, 3D plan and architecture designs, Home & office interior & exterior décor, Event planning, Painting and wall arts.

As a young girl, Adzigbli dreamt of becoming a lawyer but to carry on her father’s legacy, she ended up becoming a female carpenter in a male-dominated industry.

“My Dad’s dying words to me affected me positively,” she said. “He said I will never be successful in any career aside carpentry. I laughed and asked why. He said I was born to lead the feminine generation into creativity.”

She grew up making penny boxes and fixing broken tables, chairs and petty damages at home with her dad. “I didn’t train to be a carpenter. My Dad was one and because I was Daddy’s girl I learned it from him. I was always with him whilst he was working,” she said in an interview with Ghanaian blogger Edward Asare.

Adzigbli didn’t take his words seriously at first so went ahead with her life after her father’s demise. She tried out several things before settling.

After completing her studies at Aburi Presbyterian Secondary Technical Senior High School, she joined the showbiz industry as a model, but did not excel and went into acting. That also did not go well hence she gave up on show business.

At that point, she decided to venture into carpentry with the knowledge and training she received from helping her late father. Adzigbli now runs a fast-growing carpentry and furniture design shop.

“Patience, humility, creativity, ready to learn and good human relations are attributes one must possess to survive in the industry, and she is proud to say she has got them all and is surviving well. It doesn’t get easier dealing with very complicated clients’ needs,” she revealed.

One of her biggest achievements has been putting up her own house and owning a car from the toils and sweats of working as a carpenter.

Nurses are unique, they have the insatiable need to care for others, and that is their strength. Caring is the essence of nursing and midwives . These words describe Emannuella Inah , a registered Nurse and Midwife who is touching lives, and changing narratives through her work. ​

She is passionate about seeing that women of African descent go through  pregnancy effortlessly and are armed with information relevant for maternal and child health. Through​ her initiative;​ Safe Pregnancy Africa, a community of black women which she founded​. ​Emmanuella dedicates her time to teaching and mentoring women through the trimesters of pregnancy, contributing to curbing maternal and child mortality rates in Nigeria and Africa as a whole.

She is also the founder of the  Preggy pidgin podcast, a platform that gained global recognition after emerging as one of the 35 best pregnancy podcasts in the world in 2021. She uses the platform  to reach the inner cities of Africa, educating people on successfully transitioning from pregnancy to delivery without complications using the  Nigerian pidgin, a language as old as Nigeria and spoken in several countries of the Africa continent.

In 2020, Emmanuella was listed as one of the 100 outstanding women Nurse and Midwife leaders in the world. A list which was compiled by the World Health Organization, International Council of Midwives, Nursing Now, Women in global health and UNPFA.

She has three books to her name, one of which  is titled “The PREGGY workbook “ . It is  a simplified guide to going through pregnancy and labour with concrete  information and a space for the pregnant woman to journal her experiences using prompts and questions from the book. The book is written with captivating content laced in stories that catches the human’s heart and attention.

Emmanuella is a force to reckon with and a visionary.​ She shares her inspiring journey with Esther Ijewere in this interview.

Growing up

The thought of being a Nurse or midwife never crossed my mind until a school Nurse said I acted like a real Nurse. This was in primary school, many years before I became an adult but her words never left my mind. I would later ask my mother if I truly behaved like a Nurse. It was all exciting, I took her words as a compliment, dear compliments. What nobody realised was that She planted a desire in my heart. I read books because my mother said Nurses read big books and solved hard mathematical equations because papa says it’s what Nurses do. My uniforms were neat and ironed because I didn’t want Nurse Joy to take back her kind words. The foundation for the Nurse I am today was laid years before I realised I would someday be a Nurse.

I grew into loving the profession, I had access to beautiful videos and pictures of Nurses , my mother made them available, she told me lovely stories too. Those stories infiltrated my subconsciousness and made me long for the day I would wear the Nurse’ white gown and the Nightingale’s cap. So, it wasn’t difficult to choose Nursing when I got two admission letters to either study Nursing and Chemical Science.

Inspiration behind my initiatives; Safe Pregnancy Africa and Preggy pidgin podcast

In 2018, I and three other midwives were posted to a community in Nigeria to serve for a month. In those few weeks, my eyes were opened to the large knowledge gap amongst pregnant women. The things I considered simple and expected everybody would know were things many of the women didn’t know. In that community I saw that women got pregnant by chance, there was never preparation for the health of the woman, the finances of the family, education on recognising danger signs in pregnancy and generally poor knowledge on how to successfully transition from pregnancy to puerperium.

​​My colleagues and I did a good job in educating the villagers, we took health education to the village squares and markets, and held meetings with the Chiefs on how to get funding for the Primary Health care centre.

When I got back home, there was unrest in my spirit. I knew there were other women in several other places with zero knowledge about their health, body and pregnancy. So, I went online and created Safe Pregnancy Africa, a community for women of African descent where I would educate on everything that bothers maternal and child health. A platform where I could answer questions and give guidance to as many women as I could reach.

In 2019, I realised my message was better understood when I taught in Pidgin English. I got many women asking questions for more clarification and many others speaking out. It bridged the language barrier I never knew existed. I was able to break down compound topics like Preeclampsia/eclampsia into understandable bits teaching in pidgin. This gave birth to the Preggy Pidgin Podcast. The listenership has grown from Nigeria to 38 other African countries with positive feedback every week.

Preggy pidgin podcast nominated as one of the 5 best pregnancy podcasts in the world

Consistency​ made that happen. ​ It is one thing to take a step, it is another thing to remain consistent​. ​I understood that for my message to penetrate the busy online space and get to my core audience, I have to remain consistent.

The journey so far

So far, so good. It may sound cliche but that is how it’s been.The feedback has been great, the love and positivity are some of the motivation that fuels my conviction and consistency.

Why I pitched ​my​ tent in the nursing and midwifery sector

Becoming a Nurse was easy because I believe life prepared me for the profession, but specializing in midwifery came as a result of an event that happened in 2012. It happened on a Sunday when many people had gone to church. A young lady from the village had come to stay with her husband in the neighbourhood. It was just her third week in town but she was almost due to deliver. That morning, her scream stormed the yard. The lady was in labour and not just that, the baby’s head was already in the vulva. I still don’t know if she attempted to deliver the child herself but the child’s head was trapped between her thighs and it was already turning blue. I was the first to rush into her room before other women joined in. That sight has never left my head. At that moment I wished I could do something, something to help the woman and her baby whose eyeballs were already swollen. She lost the child. Later on, I would come to learn about precipitate labour but I still wonder  what happened to the dear lady. That was the first time I wished I were a midwife. Also, the growing rate of maternal mortality inspired my decision to become a midwife. I wanted to contribute my quota to the noble course of ensuring that women especially of the African descent go through pregnancy ready, healthy, and knowledgeable.

Challenges of my work

Trust! I am a petite midwife and often, women in labour would like midwives who look physically competent. Funny right? But I have had a few challenges proving myself.

Other projects and activities

I am working on funding and distributing birth packs to 3 communities in Nigeria under Safe Pregnancy Africa. Also, I am looking to partnering with international organisations to carry out health centre renovations and sponsor training for health workers.

What I enjoy most about ​my​ job

It is the satisfaction. Nothing compares to the peace of welcoming a child into the world. Midwifery is a ministry. My hands have touched and handled purity. From the first time a newborn takes their first breath and lets out that loud cry, I am there. I think it’s right to say, I stand by the gate of life. Hahaha.

3 women who inspire me and why

One of the women that inspire me is my mother. She is very resilient and confident. Once she sets her mind to do a thing, wink an eyelid and you see the results displayed. She is focused, determined and loving.

Remi Owadokun is another woman that inspires me, she is smart. Remi utilizes resources within her environment and her reach to achieve goals one would think are farfetched.  She is smart.

Ugochi Obidiegwu is a focused woman. She inspires me. I have seen her take up projects that seemed complex and  accomplish them in a moment of time.

These women play huge roles in my life and I am blessed to have them.

Women’s awareness on maternal and child mortality rates

Not many women realize that the mortality rates are high. If we share these details with more women, they will be more interested in knowing details about their health before even falling pregnant. That is why The Preggy Pidgin podcast pushes this information through pidgin English, trying hard to ensure that more women understand the process of transitioning from no pregnancy to pregnancy and everything in between.

What can we do better as a society to educate women on mortality rate and safe pregnancy

It starts from the grass roots. If we could dedicate more time to teaching during Antenatal clinics in health centres. Answering questions without the terminologies and creating a warm setting for women to be free to express themselves. Also, training or educating the Traditional Birth Attendants ( TBA). Most women in our communities trust the TBA, if we could arm more TBAs with correct information, then they would know what to say to the women who trust them and such information would correspond to global standards.

One thing I wish to change in the midwifery sector, especially in Nigeria

Remuneration of staff!

Being a Woman of Rubies

I am teachable, smart and loving.

Funke Adeoye, a public interest lawyer who’s the founder and executive director of Hope Behind Bars Africa, a community of volunteers building a social profit organisation committed to restoring justice, dignity and hope to the lives of women and men living behind bars with particular emphasis on indigents, women and young inmates.

Funke‘s goal is simple: to promote the development of effective and sustainable interventions for increasing access to justice, human rights and reducing a cycle of recidivism/re-offending among women and juvenile offenders housed in correctional facilities in Africa.

Funke decided to become a lawyer because she wanted people, especially the underserved, to access justice. While writing her thesis on prison reforms in Nigeria, she decided to do something about the problems she discovered – so many people in prisons are poor and they can’t afford legal representation; then there’s the issue of lack of information. This idea became more concrete when she volunteered with an NGO and visited prisons.

After she spoke to lawyers about the situation of things, they told her they want to act, but they needed a platform, and she decided to create one.

Today, with headquarters in Abuja, the organisation works with volunteers in Abia, Niger and Nasarawa states in Nigeria.

Since founding the non-profit in May 2018, Hope Behind Bars Africa has represented well over 50 indigent awaiting trial inmates in criminal and human rights cases in Abuja, Niger and Abia states, many of whom should never have been in prison in the first place.

The non-profit’s welfare interventions have reached over 1000 inmates at Suleja and Keffi Prison. It is advocating and working towards the emergence of a humane and secure correctional system where justice is easily accessible to indigents and people who find themselves behind bars are corrected and empowered to prevent re-offending.

Funke is a 2019 Accountapreneur with Accountability Lab and a Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide Makwanyane Institute Fellow.

We celebrate Funke for being a voice for the voiceless and for leading a change in the Nigerian correctional system.

Veronica has been speaking out since she was a child. As a secondary student, she noticed a gap between what women were doing in their communities and what was reported in the media. To address this, she did research in her community, wrote up her findings in a school newspaper—and pinned her work to the walls for the other students to read.

Veronica went on to become a pioneering journalist, radio broadcaster and producer.

As a producer, Veronica created educational programs on family planning, reproductive health, childcare and other topics of importance to women. More recently, she founded theAssociation of Media Women in South Sudan and established her own radio station.

Her work is critically important in this newly independent country. South Sudan sank into civil war last December, less than three years after gaining independence.

In South Sudan, men own most private media companies and the majority of reporters are men. Most female journalists work for state-owned media companies where men also have more decision-making power, and where political bodies censor the content. As a result, there is very little space for women’s voices in South Sudanese media.

Veronica’s organization aims to add more balance to the news by increasing the visibility of women’s issues and offering support and training to female journalists. Veronica’s radio station also gives women in rural areas the opportunity to learn about government policies and services, and to express their views on local and national issues.

It is very important to have women in media and women as civil society,” says Veronica. “I had to take the initiative of establishing an association for media women in South Sudan so that we fill the gap of having balanced information and to advocate for the rights of women through and in media.”

WATCH Veronica Lucy Gordon speak about the importance of women in media

Credit: Noble Women’s Initiative

Queen D. Tardoo who hails from Benue state, is said to be the first lady to study Aeronautical Engineering from the state.

In an interview with Wisdom Nwedene, Igbere TV & 9news Nigeria editor, Tardoo shares how she became first lady from Benue State to study Aeronautical Engineering.

She narrated the challenges she experienced studying the course in Philippines. She also revealed that she studied Computer science at Benue State University before she traveled to Philippines to obtain her second degree.

Read excerpts below,

How do you feel being the first girl to study Bs Aeronautical Engineering from Benue State?

“I am overwhelmed with joy. It hasn’t being am easy journey. I also feel blessed, honoured and accomplished. I was always told aviation especially aeronautical engineering wasn’t for women. But I have had to opportunity to prove that wrong. It is also a responsibility to motivate other women, especially from benue state and make them understand that they can do even greater things regardless of their gender.”

Which part of Benue State are you from?

“I am tiv, from Ushongo Local Government Area”

Can you tell us about the University which you studied this course?

“I studied in two different schools. I started my course in the year 2014 at PATTS college of aeronautics, paranaque, Metro Manila Philippines. Studied there from 2014 – 2017. Then I transferred to Holy Angel University, Angeles City, Philippines. Studied there from 2017 – 2019.”

Wow! That’s nice. Did you study in any university in Nigeria before travelling to Philippines?

“Yes. I studied in Nigeria. B.S Aeronautical Engineering is actually my 2nd Bachelor’s Degree. I took up B.Sc Computer science at Benue State University, Makurdi.”

That’s very great. You look pretty young. Can you tell us about your age? And having studied both in Nigeria and Philippines, is there any difference in the system of education?

“I am 28years old.”

“Yes. There is a difference. The Philippines has adopted the American system of education which is quite different from the system in Nigeria. Both systems of education have their pros and cons.”

What made you to achieve this feat?

“Determination, perseverance, hard work, support from my family and friends (most especially from my mum) and most importantly God’s mercy and blessings.”

Meet Queen Tardoo

Does your mom live in Philippines or she is in Nigeria?

“She lives in Benue state, Nigeria.”

Can you tell us about a project that you worked on in school. Did you run into any difficulties? If so, how did you handle it?

“I worked on a few projects while in school both academic and extra curricular ones. Hence, I am the reigning Miss Holy Angel University, Philippines. I am always involved in one project or the other. But, the one project I am most proud of is my final research work. I worked on a birdstrike prevention project for my final research in 5th year. A project feasibility study which had to do with the use of laser lights to prevent bird-aircraft crash.(birdstrikes). And this particular project won me a medal as the best thesis of the year 2019 in the Aeronautical engineering department of Holy Angel University, Philippines.”

Meet Queen Tardoo

What challenges did you encounter in the process of achieving this feat?

“There were alot of challenges, being a black person in an Asian country isn’t always great. You experience a lot of racism and it affects you as a student. Also, being female in a field that is considered to be for the male gender is also not easy. You have to prove yourself all the time, you are always stereotyped to be not competent enough. Aeronautical engineering itself is very challenging. You have to study extra hard and make a lot of sacrifices, but it will always be worth it in the end.”

What motivates and inspires you?

“My mother has always been my inspiration. She is the strongest person I know and everytime I think of the sacrifices she makes for me. I want to be a better person not just for me but for her. I have also cultivated the habit of turning my challenges into motivations. Whatever challenge I face at a particular time, I try to extract some positivity from that situation, make sure I learn from it and build myself into a better human being.”

What are your hobbies?

“My hobbies. I am an athlete as well so I like athletic events, I like to play volleyball, go bowling, watch sports channels, especially football. I also like to read, dance, listen to music and taking a walk on the beach with my bare feet.”

Who are your mentors?

“My number one mentor will still be my mother. She contributed alot in molding me into the person that I am today. I find myself looking up to her and learning a lot from her. I have always wished to develop myself into the kind of woman that she is and by God’s grace even better.”

Do you have plan of coming back to Nigeria since you have finished your study over there?

“Nigeria will always be my home and I can return at anytime. But the goal right now is to further my studies, obtain alot of licences and also work at the same time. Hence, there isn’t any university in Nigeria that offers a master is aeronautical or aerospace engineering. I will not be returning home immediately. But, I will visit from time to time.”

 

Source: yabaleftonline

Chief Mrs. Olutoyin Olakunri is the first female Chartered Accountant in Sub-Saharan Africa.

A woman of many firsts, Olutoyin was born on November 4, 1937. She attended primary school in Nigeria and completed her secondary and tertiary education in the United Kingdom.

In February 1963, she qualified as a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England & Wales.

She became a foundation member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria in 1965. In 1978, she served as the Chairman of the Society of Women Accountants in Nigeria.

She was also the first female President of the Institute of Directors in Nigeria, former member of the National Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Policy Commission, Vision 20:2020 Committee, and Council of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

Olutoyin was a member of the Constituent Assembly that generated the 1979 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

A former president of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria. She was on the Finance Committee of Nigerian Institute of International Affairs and the Board of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited for 8 years.

She also served as the Chairman of the Education Trust Fund, now Tertiary Education Trust Fund for two terms.

Chief Mrs. Olutoyin Olakunri received many local and international awards for her contributions to the profession and societal development. One of which is the Officer of the Federal Republic [OFR] of Nigeria.

 

 

Credit: womenafrica.com

Karen Uhlenbeck, a mathematician and a professor at the University of Texas, emerged as the first woman in the world to win a Nobel prize in mathematics. The Abel Prize, modeled by the Nobel Prize and awarded by the King of Norway to honor mathematicians who have made impact in their field, began in 2003 and since inception has only been awarded to men.

However, Uhlenbeck who is known for “the fundamental impact of her work on analysis, geometry and mathematical physics” changed that. The award comes with a cash prize of about N253 million and a recognition as a giant in the world of mathematics. Uhlenbeck is renowned for her work in geometric partial differential equations as well as integrable systems and gauge theory, Gucmakale reports. It was gathered that one of her most famous contributions were on pioneering the field of geometric analysis in which she created theories of predictive mathematics. Among her colleagues, Dr. Uhlenbeck is renowned for her work in geometric partial differential equations. Photo: UGC. Source: UGC

The minister was recognised for how he initiated a reconciliation process between his country and its long time enemy, Eritrea. According to the prize’s committee, it gave the award to Ahmed to encourage its peace-making effort even though there are still many things to be done.

According to the prize’s committee, it gave the award to Ahmed to encourage its peace-making effort even though there are still many things to be done.

Healthcare is an integral part of any society and getting it right in that sector should be paramount. One of the most important part of any discipline, healthcare inclusive, is information. The more people know, the more they can do.

Farida Kabir is a health technology expert, an advocate for women and girls in STEM who’s also passionate about good governance and strong institutions.

Farida is a public health scientist, software developer, and UI/UX designer. She’s the founder of OTRAC, a healthcare Learning Management System (H-LMS) that provides cloud based medical contents to vary array of medical practitioners.

Through OTRAC, Farida provides “tailored trainings/courses for public and general health practitioners with a vision to build a learning platform that supports continuous development of all health practitioners, and enhance their capacity and knowledge for effective service delivery.”

OTRAC, founded in 2017, currently has over 8,000 subscribers, 27 courses, and 32 facilitators in its platform.

She’s an ICT advisor for Department For International Development (DFID)’s Partnership to Engage, Reform, and Learn (PERL) programme which “links governments and citizen groups to collectively address governance challenges for improved service delivery”. She’s an ambassador for Google Women Techmakers, Abuja and co-organizer for Google Developer Group, Abuja.

She also consults for Reboot, an organisation working with change agents in government, civil society, and philanthropy to achieve their social missions.

She also contributes her skills working at Mentally Aware Nigerian Initiative (MANI), a mental health awareness platform tackling the stigma associated with mental illness.

Farida, a graduate of Zoology from Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, is one of 100 women named in Leading Ladies Africa (LLA)’s 100 Most Inspiring Women in Nigeria list for 2019.

We celebrate Farida for devoting her skills to assisting developmental initiatives and solving social problems.

 

Nigerian-born Suara made history on September 12 , 2019 after becoming the first Muslim in history to be elected to Nashville’s Metro Council.

She was elected to fill one of the five At-Large council seats.

Here are a few things to know about her.

  1. Zuarat Suara attended The Polytechnic, Ibadan, Nigeria from 1985 – 1990 where she obtained an HND in Accountancy.

2. She came to the U.S. in 1993 but settled in Tennessee as her new home in 1998 when the opportunity for her husband to do a fellowship at Vanderbilt presented itself.

3. She founded an accounting firm that has worked with county governments in Hardeman, Haywood, Lake, and McNairy counties.

4. She is currently the Assistant Controller of a local university in Nashville.

5. She started the Hardeman County Chapter of Junior Achievement in 2004 and continues to advocate for children and young people as a board member of the PENCIL Foundation.

6. Suara has served in a number of leadership positions, including the chair of the American Muslim Advisory Council.

7. She has supported women, serving two terms as State President of the Business and Professional Women, a century-old organization promoting equity for all women in the workplace, from 2009-2011.

Image result for zulfat suara biography

8. She is active politically as treasurer of the National Women’s Political Caucus and chair of Day on the Hill, a joint legislative day for several women’s organizations on issues affecting Tennessee women and children.

9. She has also been a speaker at the Nashville Women’s March each year since 2017.

10. She has been recognized with the FBI Directors’ Community Leadership Award and featured in the Jackson Sun’s Twenty Most Influential Women in West Tennessee.

11. She was named the 2018 Muslim Policy Advocate of the Year by Islamic Society of North America, and The Tennessee Economic Council on Women inducted her into its Tennessee Women Hall of Fame in 2015.

12. She recently received an award for Outstanding Service to Human Rights from the TN Human Rights Commission and currently serves as a board member of the Nashville Metro Action Commission.

13. Suara has been married for 27 years to Dr. Rahaman Suara and they are blessed with five amazing children.

 

 

Credit: fabwoman.ng

When a Pharmacist  has a burning passion for women and children,  committed to giving hope to the hopeless, and lending her voice to the voiceless, she deserves to be celebrated. Tobore reflects what humanity should look like.

Tobore Anne Emorhokpor is the founder of Nigerian Child Protection Trust and the convener of the End Child Sexual Group. She is a leading voice in the women and child development sector.

The Cardiff University Alumni also did a virtual leadership principles course at Harvard Business school. Tobore is driven by personal development and self-improvement, and she  has emerged as a credible voice armed with a passion for getting justice for the oppressed. She loves to go beyond people’s expectations and delight them.

She is renowned for her unique style of blended mentoring, empathy and speaking up for the oppressed through her various social media channels. Her inspirational leadership, empathy and benevolence makes it easy for women and children to have a connection with her. She wants a Nigeria where women are empowered to look after themselves and their children.

She detests children being used and abused for child labour and wants a great reduction in sexual abuse and rape of women and minors.

The testament to her impact is the media mentions she has gotten for her humanitarian work and her Right Livelihood Award for outstanding role in reducing hunger, inequality and improving sustainability.

Tobore is happily married with kids. She shares her inspiring story in this interview exclusively with Esther Ijewere.

Childhood Influence

Growing up, I witnessed the effects of abuse and cheating around me. Domestic abuse has a negative impact on children. That is why I get really upset when women say they stay for the sake of their children. This is a myth not reality.

They stay for themselves because the children suffer more in such situations. Your children cannot be happy if you are not happy. I love children dearly. I am passionate about children. I love carrying babies and playing with children. They make me so happy. I remember one time our driver beat up his 3-year-old son badly. I was so enraged. I asked my Father to deal with him. I knew I had to fight for these children that could not fight for themselves.

Inspiration behind my organisation; Nigerian child protection trust and End child sexual group

 I was coming across a lot of sad posts on Facebook about children being defiled and nothing being done about it. I eventually decided to do something. I wasn’t sure how or what I was going to do as I currently live in the UK, but I wanted to start with what I had, so I started a group on Facebook. I asked friends if they would like to join, and they did. That is how we started ‘End child sexual abuse in Nigeria’.

I would post stories of cases, some educational posts on how to protect your child and other requests for help. I also used my personal wall to ask for help. I then decided that I could act as a signpost for people.

Wherever there is a problem in Nigeria, I will find the closest Human rights officer, NGO, or Government Organisation to help. I was not going to change the world and make as much change as I could. I wanted to become the voice for these children.

Being a Pharmacist by profession, and the impact on my advocacy for women and children

I started off as a pharmacist and practised in the UK and Nigeria, then I decided to branch into Human Resources. I currently work as a Workforce Planning Lead. I enjoy planning and putting in processes. This helps me in how I deal with the cases that I work on. I speak with each person to find out what they currently do, how they got into the situation they are in, and how they can get out. It’s not a pity party but a way to plan their way out of their problems. I feel very proud when women I have helped turn around and help others up. I am very proud of the women I have helped.

The journey since I started my Organisation

The journey has been tough but very rewarding. When women come to me for help, I would ask what they can do and try to start up small businesses for them so they can be self-sufficient. Some people just want someone to talk to. I spend time chatting with them to understand the situation and give the best advice I can. I am so happy with what we have achieved together in such a short time. I didn’t know what I would really be doing but my social media pages have brought succour to many and I thank God for that.

The spike in cases of domestic violence and rape since the beginning of the pandemic

In the past, abusers would go to work or to school and leave the home environment and return at the end of the day. Due to the lockdown, there was no room for escape. Emotions were heightened. People lost jobs and hardship increased. This added stress to an already burning pot and resulted in a huge increase in the number of cases of violence. Poverty breeds ignorance.

Challenges of being a women’s advocate 

The people I am trying to help sometimes lie and try to scam me. One of these women showed me a prescription and lied that she needed to buy the medications on it for 3 weeks for her baby.

Unfortunately for her, I know how to read a prescription and I told her no Doctor would tell her to do that. She started stuttering and saying it’s the hospital. I was scammed by another lady who got people to act and do videos requesting help as a trick to get money from me and other unsuspecting kind-hearted people.

We also have the Police who sometimes take bribes and let culprits go. We then have to use social media to call them out to get them to do the right thing. Victims and their families are sometimes scared about reporting crimes and refuse for us to help them seek justice when they have been harmed or wronged.

I have had a few cases where people tell me about situations of abuse then grow cold feet and refuse to go further. No matter how I try to encourage them to tell the truth and speak out, fear of being known as the whistle blower does not allow them to help victims.

There is a man who lures boys with gifts and passes them about in a paedophile ring. The sister of one of the boys approached me for help then later recanted because her parents told her to ‘leave it to God’. Another person contacted me about a school in Lagos where the Principal rapes young girls in his care but then refused to give me proof when they realised the school might be involved in the case.

Other projects and activities

When covid first struck, there were a lot of families that were left without any food and money. The first post I made was to ask ‘who has 5k to spare for a family in need’. People responded and I paired givers with recipients. Others saw what I was doing, and the finances poured in.

We bought bags of rice and shared them out to people in Warri, Port Harcourt and Ilorin. I used my Facebook wall to raise money to pay rent, start up small businesses for the women so they can renew the next year’s rent. We paid for surgeries, medicines, school fees and everything else in between.

I have posted job adverts so people can get jobs and a few kind people have offered free sewing courses and other types of training for people on my wall for free or for a little sum.

We paid for a few caesarean sections and have helped pay the bills for women who have ended up as hostages in hospitals as they were unable to pay their huge medical bills. I remember when I was called about a woman whose baby had died inside her and was rotting and there was no money to pay a deposit to do the emergency c-section. I put it on my wall and within half an hour we had raised the deposit to start the surgery.

We ended up raising over 500,000 Naira for her medical treatment which lasted a while.

 What I enjoy about my job

I enjoy helping people. That is what makes me happy. I like seeing everyone around me happy and smiling. In every job I have done, that is what has kept me satisfied and motivated.

3 women who inspire me and why

First, my Mum; She has worked hard and tirelessly to give us a good life. She is the most hard working and innovative woman I know. She is dogged and never gives up.

Defunke Adewumi – She has a heart for women and children. I saw the love, care and humility in her post and knew I must be her friend. She has supported me in many ways and continues to be a beacon for women and children in Nigeria.

Michelle Obama – A Queen!

The Nigerian Government and it’s support for the Gender Based Violence sector

So far, I have seen that Lagos state has taken the fight against rape seriously. I believe all other states need to follow suit. There should be special Police Officers trained on how to handle such cases and special courts to fast track such cases through.

There needs to be adequate shelters to house victims and survivors. There should also be programmes put together to help them recover psychologically and help them start up business or get jobs and reintegrate into society. All states need to adopt the Child Rights Act and make sure children are protected from exploitation either sexually or via labour. Every child has a right to good education and a good life free from abuse.

Work life balance

It is quite difficult, and I have to keep reminding myself I cannot do it all. The requests for help are more than I can handle, and each one rips through the heart chords. It is especially sad for me each time I turn some people away, but I have to do so. I try to get some time to myself, and I also work on spending lots of time with my children. They are quite young and need a lot of my time right now. I try to maintain a good balance.

One thing I wish I could change in the Gender Based Violence Sector  

There needs to be a budget to support women and children who are victims of all forms of abuse. Shelters should be built to house them while working on helping them to integrate back into society. Children who are found to be child labourers in homes, can be taken away and given better lives rather than waiting for them to be abused and degraded by their mean bosses. Their only crime is being born into poverty.

Receiving the right livelihood award in 2021 for reducing hunger

I was excited and grateful for being recognized. The work is done out of love, but it is nice to know my peers see it as something commendable.

Being  a woman of Rubies

I am a woman using my abilities to help make a change and impact the world around me.