By CALLISTUS OFFOR, Abuja-
The Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen says there is an urgent need to ensure gender equality is achieved in Nigeria through the mobilization of resources and establishment of a good partnership to overcome the challenges of rural women.
The Minister disclosed this in Abuja at a National engagement with rural women to commemorate International Women’s Month, adding that stakeholders must rise up to actualise “this achievable objective”.
Mrs Tallen who decried the high rate of gender inequalities in the country, noted that it has impacted the development and advancement of rural women, hence the need to bridge the gap through intense advocacy,
“We want to engage wives of our traditional rulers…to talk to women to make sure girl-child education is properly addressed, female genital mutilation is properly addressed and making sure they take their children for antenatal care”, she said.
On her part, the wife of the Chief of Karishi, Mrs Halima Mohammed said girl-child education was fundamental in the realisation of gender equality and promised to sustain the sensitization on the importance of education in Karishi Community.
“The only way we can achieve that is by sending our girls to school. As the minister said, we have been saying also, and we keep on saying, the girl child education, you cannot quantify it because once you educate a girl you have no problem”, she said.
The President, Housing Estate Women Association Karishi, Mrs. Grace Sauka said insecurity had affected the number of girls attending school in the community.
“Because of insecurity…they prefer the boy child to go to school than the girl”.
She said they would encourage fathers to allow girls to return to the classroom.
Key highlight of the event includes the distribution of food items such as: vegetable oil, rice, pasta and fabric to vulnerable women, in order to cushion the effects of COVID-19 pandemic.
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