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Yakubu Oyiza Hope is an Akwa Ibom-based indigene of Kogi state. A fashion designer, certified chef and human trafficking advocate. She is the founder of LUNA Foundation, a foundation that’s solely focused on repatriating and reintegrating trapped victims of human trafficking.

Presently, the organization consists of 182 survivors, which includes, 9 newborn babies, 8 pregnant women, 120 females and 45 males, She works with a team of 18 volunteers who support her organization.

Oyiza Yakubu shares her inspiring story with us in this exclusive interview.  

Yakubu Oyiza Hope

Childhood Influence

As a child, I loved humanitarian work, from a distance, I loved getting the desired help and this made me volunteer for an organization in 2010, immediately after my secondary school.

I volunteered with the Salvation Army, Nigeria ( HIV/AIDS) department and we would travel across the country for sensitization campaigns. My mum was very supportive of me even when I was so young, after that, I volunteered with Daughters of Charity, St Vincent de Paul, where I went to different villages to run HIV tests and later became an adherence counsellor for HIV-positive patients.

Inspiration Behind Luna Foundation

LUNA foundation wasn’t really my goal in the first place, all I wanted was for people to know what was going on to migrants in Libya, I started using my platform to share not until I came across relatives of missing persons in Libya, then it occurred to me that I could use my experience to bring a group of volunteers together to search from missing persons, get them out of traffickers grip and restore hope to the family.

Read Also: My Wish Is For Nigeria To Have Facilities For Special Needs Children

The Journey So Far

The journey has been stressful and fruitful as well, there are days I want to run away and leave everything behind but when I look at the results so far, I want to do more. We presently have 2 camps in Libya housing 182 individuals and a total of 36 is expected to join us anytime soon, we have also been able to provide answers to 49 relatives about their missing ones. We are currently looking at working in Ghana, and Egypt as well.

Being At The Forefront Of Reintegrating Trapped Victims Of Human Trafficking

Working with the victim has shown me that life is deep and people are stronger than what I give credit for, it has taught me to be holistic and always think on my feet which is one of my greatest strengths.

For victims who have relatives they can trust, we encourage them to stay with the relatives and only share their stories when they feel it’s right, we also encourage them to share their story after undergoing psychology evaluation, this is to prevent them from having a breakdown due to the harsh judgement from the world.

Challenges

As the lead founder, it’s extremely scary because traffickers see me as a threat and try to frustrate my efforts. I have to be extremely security conscious, provide answers, and be exposed to different gory images and videos, it takes extra grace to keep on.

How We Run The foundation

For now, we don’t have sponsors. We just collaborated with an Italian partner and we got mattresses from them for the newborn babies at the camp.

Read Also: How Chioma Ogamba Is Helping People Achieve Their Immigration Dream To Canada

My Work-Life-Balance Routine As a Single Mother

Being a single mother to a 5-year-old plus work is stressful but I work with time daily, I have effectively built a time table I work with and with the physical support of my brother, it helps in relieving me on my tired days.

What  Government Should Put In Place To End human trafficking? 

I believe the government should intensify awareness campaigns to villages and educate our local religious leaders, who are the more vulnerable people to the gimmicks of traffickers.

One Thing I Wish To Do To Make The World A Better Place

Hmmm, I would ensure every woman has the POWER to say NO and I would make sure such Power is respected. For children, I would just ensure they live as children without the burden of serving the adults.

Oyiza Hope

Being A Woman Of Rubies

I am a woman of ruby because I have turned my pain to purpose, I have turned my lemon to wine. While I was brutally sexually assaulted and stabbed, I have made the decision to use that experience to ensure no woman has to go through that again just because she wants to make ends meet. I am a woman of rubies because, through my pain, I have seen purpose.

 For Young Women Who Aspire To Be Where I Am 

Nothing will come easy but keep holding on, and don’t joke with any opportunity around you, it will come in handy in future.

Oyiza Yakubu

3 women Who Inspire Me and Why

My late mother, Olufunmilayo. She was everything a woman should be, I have always admired her strength and whenever I am stuck, I would say, what will my mother do? Elder Olabisi-Ajai, without even knowing me, she gave me a platform to grow on.

Read Also: Women Of Rubies Was Born Out Of My Passion For Humanity

 If I  Could Address The United Nations Assembly on Issues Affecting The Society

I would talk about human trafficking because it’s a menace that brings about other menace like Drug peddling, forced slavery, organ trafficking, sex trafficking etc. If we can uproot the root, the branches will wither.

Follow Oyiza Yakubu on Facebook to learn more about her work.

 

Black Panther” star Danai Gurira has been appointed as a goodwill ambassador of the United Nations.

Danai announced the news via her Instagram page.

She wrote:

Being appointed @unwomen Goodwill Ambassador in front of an amazing crowd of tens of thousands in Southern Africa where my passion and heritage stems from, was a deeply profound moment for me. I will seek to assure that She Is Equal in our world by doing everything I can to amplify the voices of women who work tirelessly to bring about justice and rights for women and girls globally, sometimes at risk of their very lives. I am honored to give voice to their efforts, and I am honored to join the UN Women family.

Credit: Bella Naija

A group of United Nations agencies has issued a joint statement calling for a ban on tests meant to assess the virginity of any female.

The statement, issued during the World Congress of Gynaecology and Obstetrics in Brazil, stressed that such tests are both unscientific, and a violation of human rights. The UN agencies are: the UN Human Rights Office, UN Women and the World Health Organisation.

The group said, “so-called virginity testing also often referred to as hymen, two-fingers or per vaginal examination is a gynaecological inspection of female genitalia carried out in the false belief that it can reliably determine whether a woman or girl has had vaginal intercourse’.

In a global call to eliminate violence against women and girls everywhere, the UN agencies said that “this medically unnecessary, and often times painful, humiliating and traumatic practice, must end.”

The practice is a long-standing tradition documented in at least 20 countries, and spanning all regions of the world. Women and girls are often forced to undergo virginity testing for various reasons, including requests from parents or potential partners to establish marriage eligibility or even from potential employers.

It is mostly performed by doctors, police officers, or community leaders on women and girls, in order to assess their virtue, honour or social value. In their statement, the UN agencies explained that the practice has “no scientific or clinical basis” and that “there is no examination that can prove a girl or woman has had sex.”

 

 

Credit: LIB