Esther Ijewere

In self development November 20, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

SIJU YUSUF : WOMAN, WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

It was a women-only meeting, one of those organised by the women leader (usually the Head Pastor’s wife) to empower other women.

The agenda on this occasion was to inspire attendees to be more. To unlock potentials and harness their strengths.

I cannot remember what led to this conversation or the question that followed. However, I remember quite vividly how this beautiful unassuming woman stood up to ask a question, the question that changed the course of the conversation for that day and opened my eyes to the reality of some other women.

I call it a question because even though she presented it factually, I ‘decided’ it should be for her, a question. It was the most dramatic statement I had heard by then.

She said and I quote ‘When we get to heaven, our husbands will ‘face’ God on our behalf. Men will give account for the women-folk because they are our heads.

Saying I was dumbfounded is putting it extremely mildly but as one of the major participants of the event, I painfully had to snap out of my reverie. I mean, how beautiful will it be to carelessly dump my failures on HIS head at the end of time, I may as well start now. It will indeed be convenient to say the reasons I haven’t met deadlines and delivered or accomplished to the measure of expectations is because of a man/my husband.

Where ever this woman got her idea from, I may never know and honestly, it is irrelevant. The fact that she ‘lived’ (hopefully not anymore) with this idea carefully balanced in her head is what baffles me till date. I haven’t stopped wondering how many more women live with such ideas as this.

I may not even be as keen as talking about the end of time but I am so interested in how much influence, authority and rule we give men over us. Some ideas are as short changing as they are deadly.

To think we are not living up to the measure of our talents because ‘only men’ are expected to be talented is mind bugging.

An able bodied woman refuses to add value to herself because she believes women do not need to. Only men do. How lazily ridiculous! What books are you reading? What companies do you keep? Where do you get your ideas?

Snap out of the day dreaming for one, it is a bad dream and two, you are designed to do more; be more.

You may not be looking at making history like Michelle Obama but you need to be an example to the generation coming after you.

Stop shortchanging yourself with ridiculous excuses.

Stop applying the bible out of context.

Stop letting in junk.

Guard your heart with all diligence. These are the issues of life that we are talking about.

In Inspiration November 18, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

#INTERVIEW|”I WANT VOLUNTEERING TO BECOME A LIFESTYLE FOR YOUNG AFRICAN WOMEN” – TOBBY LORDWILLIAMS

Agusi Tobby Nazaar, fondly known as Gusi Tobby Lordwlliams, is a 21 years old driven young lady, an aspirant to the Nigerian Bar and founder of one of Africa’s fastest growing female volunteering network “Girlhub Africa” . Toby is also a talkshow host, and a professional make up artist. The young serial entrepreneur who is very passionate about creating more opportunities for African women and dedicated to her humanitarian service believe women are a treasure trove of possibilities. In this chat she talks about not being tempted to give up, her eureka moment, why she created her platform and where she sees herself in five years.

Childhood
My childhood did a whole lot to influence what I do today. In fact I’m a product of the saying “Train a child the way he should grow…”My parents are my NO 1 fans…My mum is a GHAV herself (GIRL HUB AFRICA
VOLUNTEER)…They both have always encouraged volunteering to us when we were kids.. My mum will take us during school holidays and after
summer lessons, to the hair-dressers shop and tell the hairdressers that we were there to help them for free, I never understood why she did that until i was much more older, but i loved it. Eventually I
realized this was done so we could learn the hair making skill. On another holiday she will take us to the tailor, and she kept on taking us to various artisans until she found out our areas of interest,
then she encouraged us to carve a niche out of what we have learned and also to help develop our skills…especially at church events,
weddings and other programs, my mum will make myself and my sisters help the organizers, we didn’t call it VOLUNTEERING then (Laughs), my
sisters’ friends would even call us “Over sabi”, but my mum knew what she was doing. And I thank God I want through all that process. Having all those experiences, now I can bake, make hair, sew cloths, repair a generator (Laughs), make some simple furniture, to mention but a few.

Meet me
I am a 21year old Nigerian. The last born of 4 girls from a family of 6. I started volunteering for social clubs back in my school days from my first year, and the impact/advantage it had on my life made me realize that a lot of people especially young ladies needed to engage themselves in several opportunities in other to really find purpose. I am currently the lead volunteer and founder of GIRL HUB AFRICA a professional female Volunteering Network. I love meeting people, reading, teaching, and traveling. I am an addict entrepreneur. On an average day, when I’m not on the move, I’m in my shorts and top, exchanging emails and closing deals. I also spend time praising God and running my other business.

Inspiration Behind Girls Hub Africa
I noticed there is a gap in our society where we preach being our brothers keeper but we don’t teach or encourage it. Our schools and society don’t necessarily provide a structure or avenue neither do they have a curriculum for people to give their time to a cause or movement without monetary reward. Our generation gradually have become self centered unlike previous generations, this days its all about financial gain or celebrity status, we are becoming desensitized, then I realized when we volunteer, that humane side of us grows, we become more humble and value our place in society as someone who can do their little bit which adds to a collective achievement with the objective of a positive influence. I was also tired of seeing a lot of young ladies after school/NYSC say “My sister work no dey”, Yes I believe things are not so easy in the country, but life itself is not a bed of roses, you have to go out there and create what you want for yourself. There are alot of opportunities out there to engage these youths if only they are willing to be selfless about it. I am glad to say since we started in April this year, we have recorded a 30% increase in employment among our volunteers, because what you do well for free can eventually bring you your fee.

How I feel about my achievements so far…
Graced… its simply a proof that there is more to be done. All these have made me realize that the sky is truly my starting point.

Projects and activities
I do have a lot of projects at the moment, but my pet projects which I have passion for are;
a) The TOUCH ME NOT CAMPAIGN by the AMAZING AMAZON INITIATIVE –
Speaking and counseling children in upper primary schools and secondary schools on the prevalence of rape, domestic violence and child sexual Abuse.

b) The GHAV project – engaging young minds in the act of volunteering, hence our *TEENS WHO VOLUNTEER* campaign,We basically make them understand that they can find purpose early in life as well as give back to their society simply by rendering a selfless service.

Greatest reward
That would be seeing my volunteers find purpose and also become successful at any niche they carve for themselves simply because they volunteered.
It brings me so much joy that these opportunities we provide are properly utilized by them.

Where I see my brand in the next five years..
As the Ministry of VOLUNTEERING in Nigeria 😄 (Laughs) Well we do have a plan…
We are currently talking with our partners.
our focus is people development, we haven’t crystallized our strategy but we have the resource to evolve and identify growing trends and
building up the relevant skills in our volunteers so that stay relevant.

In 5 years, we intend to have GHAV in all West African countries with a good membership strength of professional volunteers.

On giving up
Have I ever felt like giving up? Not at all, but this is true, I have always loved this and as the day goes by, I want to do even more until VOLUNTEERING becomes a lifestyle for young African women.

Who inspires me
God is my first inspiration, and then my mother. She is a typical example of a virtuous woman. I would also say my GHAV’s (GIRL HUB AFRICA VOLUNTEERS), they inspire me a lot, you need to experience the
feeling of seeing ladies unite just to render selfless services in our present day Nigeria. The joy and hard work they put in inspires me alot, now I believe that women are a treasure trove of possibilities. This one itself is so much more than inspirational.

I am a Woman Of Rubies
I am a WORrior because I believe the potential every woman has can be resourceful if given the right opportunities. Personally, I look beyond the ordinary, what every other person will deem impossible is
what’s possible to me.

Final words for women
What’s your passion? find it, work and focus on it, you are the best thing to happen in your community, you need to take advantage of every
opportunity so you can shine brighter than you can ever imagine but in doing that, learn to support every woman around you.

In self development November 14, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

“I USED HARD DRUGS TILL 2016 ,BUT I’M CLEAN NOW” – TOYIN ABRAHAM

I take codeine, other hard drugs. I couldn’t boast of N1m in 2016 says newly rebranded Nolywood actress Toyin Abraham

She has opened up on her past when she abused hard drugs like marijuana and codeine, and was involved in other vices. She made the disclosure at the 2017 edition of Success Story Africa, held in Lagos, on Sunday. .

“You need to stop bad habits. I was involved in a lot of vices and it became worse last year,” PremiumTimes quoted her as saying at the event. “I did drugs and I am not ashamed to say it because it’s now a thing of the past. .

They say codeine makes you high; I took a lot. I smoked a lot and I didn’t even know I looked horrible, because I was so skinny. If you came to my house last year, you would meet a lot of people and you wont want to leave because we smoked, gossiped about people and what have you.” .

According to PremiumTimes, she also talked about the mistakes she has made in the entertainment industry and how she has not let the negativity shape her. “I made a lot of mistakes when I began acting and that was because I did not have plans. I just wanted to be known. .

But, I now know that being popular isn’t the same thing as being successful. When I got into the industry and the fame became too much, I became irresponsible. I could not boast of N1 million in 2016. I was making money and I wanted to feel among. .

When one of our colleagues bought a car, it was trouble because we all strove to buy the same car or a bigger one. I had to change my circle for good and this change started in March 2017.”

In self development November 13, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

“MALE DJ’S TREAT ME BADLY JUST BECAUSE I’M A WOMAN” – DJ LAMBO

MI Abaga’s personal DJ; Olawunmi Okerayi, popularly called DJ Lambo, coming into the music industry came with alot of challenges.

In an interview with Moet Abebe of Soundcity TV Lambo explains how she almost gave up when she just started as a result of the rejections she got.

However, with time, she made her mark and proved that she was there to stay.

DJ Lambo explained that her acceptance and recognition in the field wasn’t by mere chance. She said she was treated badly by some male DJs because she was female.

According to her ;

“I had people around me who support me and encourage me to do better but not everyone is going to treat me like that. I’ve had guys in this industry, other male DJs, treat me terribly, treat me like I didn’t know what I was doing just because I am a female. But most importantly, it has to be your spirit, you have to be so strong.”

Irrespective of this, DJ Lambo says she keeps moving and still breaks boundaries as a female DJ.

“It’s not being easy but I don’t take No for an answer. I call myself a shark. That’s what I am. I keep moving. I’m just going to keep moving ruthlessly forward.”

In 2015, she was listed on ‘top 5 Nigerian DJ’s to watch out for’ by the Nigerian Entertainment Today newspaper.

In 2016, she won “DJ of the Year (Female)” at the 2016 City People Entertainment Awards.

In 2017, DJ Lambo was among the few DJs selected to play at Big Brother Nigeria Saturday’s party at season 2 of the Big Brother Naija reality game show.

On 14 June 2017, she was announced as the head and president of Choc Boi Nation (CBN), an imprint under Chocolate City Music, a Nigerian record label regarded the biggest and most successful indigenous urban record labels in Africa.

The announcement made her one of the major and female record label executives in the music industry in Nigeria, a role she describes as a “huge responsibility. It’s like I have kids now. Its scary and exciting at the same time.”

DJ Lambo says she’s working on a project to empower girls and make them believe that they can achieve whatever their dreams are.

In self development November 13, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

SISTERHOOD GLOBAL TO TACKLE WOMEN PLIGHT

A social media platform for women across the continents named, Sisterhood Global, has been launched. The platform is aimed at tackling global problems associated with women through effective use of the media.

Its universal approach to solving the plights of women in the world has continued to receive positive responses globally.

At a media briefing the visioner and founder of the group, Nonnie Roberson, explained that the group had kick-started the global project three months ago under the name Sisterhood Africa, but had to rebrand after it had gathered over three million active members and facebook decided to shut the page down.

She said no explanation was given by facebook for doing so, but expressed optimism that the group will continually rise above gender issues by progressively rebranding and refocusing their targets.

She said: “Having tested the popularity of the group, it decided to expand its scope from Africa in order to accommodate more women globally, hence the new name – Sisterhood Global.”

Expressing her joy over the responses so far, Roberson said, “about three months ago, it was impressed in my heart to set up a platform, where women can come together, pray together, love each other, receive counsels, express how they feel inside, encourage each other and get solutions to their problems with abounding testimonies.”

She continued, “within a short while, it grew to over three million active members, but for reasons best known to Facebook, and without any prior notice, the group was taken down. Indeed, Sisterhood Africa, now Sisterhood Global was a house of solutions and testimonies. It was a place of solace for many women in Africa, and round the world, great testimonies were also shared.”

Giving assurance on the unyielding zeal of the group, Roberson said, “going forward, with full assurance that this move of God cannot be stopped, and the gates of hell cannot prevail against the church of God, we have launched Sisterhood Global. This is going to be the first time that women of faith would be building their own social network.”

Source: Guardian

In Career Gems November 13, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

SEYE AINA BECOMES FIRST FEMALE CHAIRMAN OF BRITISH NIGERIA LAW FORUM

On June5, 2017, Seye Aina became the first woman to be appointed chair of the British Nigeria Law Forum since its inception in 2001.

BNLF was set up following the ‘African Law Week’ Conference, organised by the British Council in Nigeria. Prof Oba Nsugbe QC, SAN is one of the founding members and past chair of BNLF. The organisation based in London, is now recognised as an influential professional membership organisation for British and Nigerian legal professionals.

Seye is dual qualified, called to the Nigerian Bar in 1985 and also admitted as a Solicitor in England & Wales in 1994. She has senior management/legal experience in local government with expertise in professional regulation and investigating fitness to practise in the Healthcare professions. Her public appointments include an Independent Member of the Professional Conduct Committee of the UK Council of Psychotherapy and also an Independent Member of the Standards Committee of the Greater London Authority. Seye is the founder of Paceworking, a professional network organizing business events. She has also used this platform to support charities such as the Down Syndrome.

Foundation, Nigeria and has organised several events for International Women’s Day. She is also the organising partner of the Nigeria Development and Finance Forum Conferences which are held in the UK, Nigeria and the USA.

Seye is extremely honoured to be elected as the new chair of BNLF, she is a longstanding member of BNLF and served as an executive committee member from 2008 – 2014. During that period the committee organised several events and training programmes in London, Abuja and Lagos. This included a courtesy visit to the then Lagos State Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN and BNLF also hosted a dinner at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja.

She is already in contact with the President of the Nigerian Bar Association Mr A.B Mahmood, SAN who congratulated her on her new appointment. BNLF has been working with a committee of the NBA headed by Chief Idigbe, SAN working on proposals for reforms in the legal profession in Nigeria. In addition to this BNLF committee members were also at the NBA’s Section on Business Law Conference, ‘Law and changing the face of legal practice’. Seye will continue the tradition of working closely with stakeholders in the UK, Nigeria and Africa. As part of a new initiative to set up specialist working groups and a skills database, BNLF is conducting a survey of members. The new chair has also been active with other BME law organisations responding to the Grenfell Tower fire tragedy in London. Seye has a great record of community engagement and working with professionals.

During her tenure she seeks to work hard to enhance the reputation of BNLF, encourage experienced lawyers to share good practise and
knowledge and to improve the opportunities for all members especially women, students and young lawyers.

In Career Gems November 11, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

NIKE BECOMES FIRST MAJOR BRAND TO LAUNCH HIJAB FOR WOMEN

Nike’s new hijab is designed to make sport more comfortable for Muslim women and goes on sale in 2018.

The light fabric has tiny holes for breathability and the length has also been designed to stop it coming untucked during activity.

Nike said it had been developing the new sporting hijab for a year.

Sporting hijabs have been around for several years, but Nike is the first major international company to embrace the sports needs of Muslim women.

Small sporting brands such as Capsters and ResportOn have previously been seen as leading brands of sporting hijabs.

In Interviews&profile November 6, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

MEET MARY AWOH, THE YOUNG UNDERGRADUATE WHO IS THE CEO OF SWEET INDULGENCE

While a lot of youths out there are getting involved in criminal activities and rebellious acts, blaming the society for their shortcomings, a 20-year-old Mass Communication student of Babcock University, Awoh Rosemary, whose father passed on at age six, leaving her with single parenting, has become the CEO of Sweet Indulgence, an organic skincare enterprise. She has become an entrepreneur today.

During a press briefing in Lagos recently, Rosemary said she started making skincare products in December last year and decided to do something unique by using cup cakes to mold soap with crested flower designs to get something attractive that would get people to indulge in it, and that was where the name Sweet Indulgence emanated.

She said: “I make soap, body waters, body lotion, body scrub, olive balm and facial oil and they are all organic with natural products like honey, Shea butter and other natural contents with no preservatives.”

Business-minded Rosemary who hails from Delta state now juggles between working and schooling with ease as she is already accustomed to hard work from her childhood, when she would help her mother, a senior lecturer in the Department of Industrial Design at YABATECH, with keen interest in her baking workshop and decorating event centers.

Her life as an entrepreneur started from primary school: “I would buy things from stores and take it to class to sell, and my class teacher encouraged me by mandating my classmates to buy everything they needed from me. While in high school I stringed simple beads and sold to my friends,” she said.

She added that she got inspired to make natural skincare products from compliments about her glowing skin on her TV show on Arcadia mobile TV- The DIY Slab With Awoh Rosemary.

“I was using natural products from the market and I would spend a lot of money buying them, so I decided I could make something as nice and tell people I use my own product.

“I searched for the recipe online but the first time I tried it out, it turned out bad because I did not get the right chemical measurement, but with time I got it right and improved immensely” she said.

She got her friends to experiment her first liquid black soap and bar soap by selling to them. “They were basically my first clients; I would sell to them and they would complain about mild reactions, but in no time it became perfect with no reactions.

“I started receiving positive feedbacks from customers and now I have a good number of customers with frequent orders home and abroad and in less than five months the turnout have been impressive”.

“I won an Entrepreneur Of The Year Award in school this year and that got me publicity from Radio station. My department did a biography on me and people were surprised that an undergraduate has the time and passion for creativity and business. My picture is in my VC’s office and this attracted interviews from the media,” she said.

Rosemary concluded that she looks forward to exporting her products to more countries and advised Nigerian youths to get creative with distinctiveness, as that would go a long way to make them useful to themselves and the society at large.

Credit: Guardian Woman, interview by Maria Diamond

In Inspiration April 3, 2021 By Esther Ijewere

Hawking At Age 10 Made Me More Determined- Adeola Olubamiji

Adeola Deborah Olubamiji was born oin Ibadan to the family of Mr. & Mrs. Isaac & Juliana Olubamiji. She attended Alafia Public Primary School and St. Gabriel’s Secondary Commercial School in Mokola, Ibadan, Nigeria. Despite her humble beginning as a child hawker, she surmounted all odds to become the senior prefect girl of her secondary school. She obtained a Bachelor of Science in Physics (with Electronics) from Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Nigeria in 2008 and a Masters of Science in Biomedical Engineering from Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland in 2011. In June 2017, Adeola received her PhD in Biomedical Engineering from University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada and made history as the first black person to have received this PhD from the university. Dr. Adeola is currently the Lead Metallurgist / Material Engineer at Burloak Technologies (The Advanced Additive Manufacturing Division of Samuel Sons & Co) in Ontario, Canada.

Dr. Adeola is a consultant and the founder of 3D-Tech Centrix, Ontario, Canada: A consulting firm specializing in development of 3D-printing technology and related manufacturing solutions for use in different industries. In July 2017, Dr. Adeola was chosen and celebrated as one the top 5 of 150 black women making Canada better for her contributions in Science and Technology by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. She was also recently presented a prestigious award as the Woman of Outstanding Achievement in Education by the Nigerian-Canadian Community in a ceremony held in Toronto, Canada. Dr. Adeola’s passion for community building through volunteering is limitless and unquantifiable. Dr. Adeola is an “ardent” STEM advocate and she has continued to serve as a positive role model to the inner-city black youths in her Canadian community and around the world. From her savings, Dr. Adeola organizes regular STEM events and industrial tours for black youths in Ontario’s black communities to help youths discover what engineers do, and to expose them to STEM career opportunities available to them. Adeola whose story went viral two weeks ago shares her inspiring story with me in this mind-blowing interview.

Growing Up

I have 3 brothers and my only sister is late. I was born in Mokola Ibadan and attended Alafia Primary School and St Gabriel’s Secondary Commercial School in Mokola, Ibadan. We didn’t have much, so my siblings and myself learned to share and work together as a team quickly. My parents worked hard to ensure that we had food to eat, clothes to wear and made it a point of duty to get us to our schools on time. My mom is a workhorse and she woke up at 3 am daily to go to “Shasha Market” in Ibadan to conduct her pepper buying business.

Although my dad was unable to attain tertiary education, he is from a well-educated extended family. A few of my dad’s family members had PhDs, so my dad hung their photographs on the wall in our living room. At every opportunity my dad got, he regaled us with their success stories and explained how education took them abroad. Therefore, I ended up following the footpath of one of my uncles, Professor Abiodun Francis Oluwole who is a Professor of Nuclear Physics, to obtain a BSc in Physics with Electronics from Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye.

Hawking at age 10 made me more determined

Looking at my parent’s life, they both worked hard to care for us but we didn’t have any form of luxury. So, I learned quickly as a child that “to earn more, you must learn more.” In addition, the daily reminder was on the wall of our living room and it was clear that I needed to be “EDUCATED” to make valuable contribution to a knowledge-based society, to earn respect and to earn more money than my parents. As such, I promised myself to strive to know more critical facts, gather more information than the average person and be the best and nothing but the best.

First black person to bag a PhD in Biomedical Engineering at the university of Saskatchewan

Biomedical Engineering is a recently added branch of Engineering with capability to bring us closer to huge healthcare-related innovations and inventions. However, Nigerians and the black population in general are slowly just breaking into the field. In fact, it is almost impossible to find journal papers or conference proceedings authored by Africans (at least from the last names or first names) in the field of Biomedical Engineering. The shortage of blacks in this thriving field and shortage of women in engineering makes me feel “lonely” sometimes among my peers. Therefore, I will to continue to advocate for the introduction of the branches of Biomedical Engineering to Nigerian Universities, encourage and advocate for admission of more women into engineering disciplines, and to continue to encourage other engineers who are willing to transition to come and join me in this limitless, exciting and innovative field.

Choice to study biomedical engineering

Several health impairments and issues of failed diagnosis that could benefit from Biomedical Engineering technologies face Nigeria and Nigerians. With a BSc in Physics with Electronics, the Biomedical Engineering career path paved way for me to acquire the knowledge needed to help develop solutions to tackle the above-mentioned issues. Some of the areas that I am currently vast on are medical physics and clinical engineering, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, material development and 3D-printing, and e-health and telemedicine.

What and who inspires me

What Inspires me: As a Scientist, I am challenged and inspired by the possibilities and potentials of technology, and the fulfillment I get from solving difficult problems. As an engineer, I am inspired by industry 4.0 (e.g. 3D-printing) and its design and manufacturing capabilities. As a Nigerian, the complicated problems that I faced or my people in Nigeria face inspire me. On a daily basis, I go to work knowing that I am paying the price to acquire the knowledge and the skill-sets required to help bring back innovative manufacturing solutions to fix, improve, and tweak Nigeria’s mostly dead metal and plastic manufacturing industries.

Who inspires me: The humble background and huge historic contributions of Jesus Christ made Him my first inspiration. My middle name is Deborah and the realization of Deborah’s role as the First Female Judge in Israel, a Warrior, a Wife and a Mother made me choose her my second role model/inspiration. Furthermore, one of the men on the wall of our living room, Prof. Abiodun Francis Oluwole, inspired me to study Physics. At the moment, I have chosen Dr. Ndubuisi Ekekwe as one of my inspirations for his ability to combine successful academic credentials, technology and entrepreneurship.

Greatest Reward

There are a few of them, after many years of research and development; the ultimate reward is receiving the PhD honour itself. Seeing my narrative go viral to touch lives around the world provided me with the re-assurance that Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers, hard work and prayers are not old school and they in fact can make you a superstar. Then, securing a job as a lead engineer after my PhD and starting my career in a company that allows me utilize most of my acquired knowledge and skills made the whole process well worth it. Lastly, the smiles and tears of joy that rolled down my father’s face when he heard that I successfully defended my thesis was rewarding and very satisfying.

Recognition

In terms of recognition, I was recognized as 5^thof 150 black women making Canada better during the celebration of Canada at 150 (link:http://cbc.ca.mevn.net/radio/upclose. I was also recognised by the Nigerian Canadian Association as a “Woman of Outstanding Achievement in Education” in celebration of Canada at 150 and the award was presented to me at a Gala attended by Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Bar. Ahmed Hussen, the Ooni of Ife HRM Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Mama Nike Davies-Okundaye of Nike Art Gallery and so on.

Challenges

My PhD was not plain sailing; there were setbacks, frustrating moments, doubts, failed relationship and several failed experiments. The isolation that comes with embedding myself in research and making it my boyfriend, family and best friend was a challenge. There were moments when I slept at the University for several days in order to collect data and only went home to shower. But the most challenging aspect of the PhD by far was the job search that comes at the end of the PhD by far was the job search that comes at the end of the PhD.

Perception of Hawking

Child street-hawking is often driven by poverty, deplorable living conditions, illiteracy and unemployment. According to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, it is an offence to involve children in child-labour practices such as child hawking. However, this is the only mean of survival for some families and its eradication will be very tough.

Has there ever been a time that you feel like giving up?

The thinking of giving up is inevitable for every PhD student. Half way through my PhD, I felt like I could do something else with my life. I felt like the PhD was standing in the way of me starting my life, buying a house, finding love and getting married. I felt like it was a shear waste of time and energy and that an MSc was already more than enough.

Unfortunately, I lost my sister to cervical cancer during that time and that gave me the motivation to carry on. I thought I would do it for my sister and my dad who already started calling me doctor and never stopped encouraging me.

Contributing to Nation building back home

In recent times, the society and social media has continued to showcase role models who make education look ‘old school’, who make science look too hard, abstract and for the exceptional ones. Africa as a continent needs to start projecting scientists are role models and investing in productive education and technology aside entertainment, fashion, and cosmetics. As a STEM advocate, I’m willing to help develop hands-on programs to help motivate these students to learn and love Sciences and get exposure to Technology in a fun way. Since kids learn by doing, these programs will provide an avenue for them to connect the theoretical science taught in schools with practical science that results from these theories.

In order to conquer the extreme dependency of Nigeria and Nigerians on China and the West for metal and plastic goods, Nigeria must invest in digitized manufacturing now. The combination of “3D-printing technology” and some other manufacturing techniques will allow achievement of faster product development and consequently enable manufacturing of polymeric and metallic products at reasonable costs. This will also foster raising of young entrepreneurs and enable creation of more jobs for our engineering graduates who are forced to work in the banking sector, wait for years to secure a position in the energy sector, or move abroad to seek greener pastures.

As a scientist who has a large network of professionals, has explored both plastics and metal 3D-printing and tried several conventional manufacturing techniques, my team is capable and able to help with the set-up of a “Manufacturing Hub for Africa” in Nigeria if given a chance. 3D-printing technology is rapidly growing across multiple industries and applications: medical applications (e.g. surgical implants, prosthesis, dental, and tissue-engineered tissues and organs), aerospace applications (OEMs for airplanes and fighter jets), automotive applications (OEMs for car engines), energy industries (customized valves, heat exchangers), tooling for plastics processing, and manufacturing of customized consumer plastic products and decorations.

I am a Woman of Rubies

My life and my journey so far have made me conclude that I am an unrepeatable miracle of God.

Final word for women who have or about to lose hope because of certain setbacks.

Dear woman, with the advent of technology, the world is at your fingertip. Do not wait to be served information on a platter of gold as your power lies in how much information you acquire. Dear woman, who are you and why are you here? My go to quote is “if you don’t stand for something, you will stand for everything or anything, and when you stand for everything or anything, you stand for nothing”. My dear women, let’s altogether renew our minds, be our own saviours, our own rescue and love ourselves enough. Finally, I beseech you to dare to be limitless, dare to start that business, dare to launch that company, dare to channel that cause, dare to be different, dare to study science and dare to be innovative
—

In self development November 3, 2017 By Esther Ijewere

Siju YUSUF: Patriachy you say

In my deliberate attempts to diffuse or maybe polarize my age long belief of the patriachical world set up and with so much evidences suggesting the world is in fact a patriarchy society and in some veins also not, the struggle to reach exactitude is becoming so real.

Is the world indeed ruled by ‘fathers’? Is this an issue facing predominantly the third world countries? Is this just an empty uproar of women particularly in the wake of ‘enthroning’ the king of the United States (Reference- winner of the 2016 presidential elections)? Perhaps, it is an excuse to laziness and a cowardly escape from responsibilities.

Whatever side of the divide we stick with, an unintended service to ourselves will be to think that women are without the brawn to take on these positions that are assumed ‘too much clout’ for the female gender.

The queen, oh the queen. The queen of England is indeed one of such. We really do not have to backdate or search in the archives to get worthy examples. Okonjo Iweala and Beyonce are classical examples of ‘King Women’ albeit in different fields and sphere of influence.

The questions therefore are

– what are the limitations?

– why is the ration of men to women in influential positions still so ridiculous?

– is the world indeed patriachical or it is zone informed?

Again, I think about positioning….

Still my thoughts.

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