By Justina Auta
The Sustainable Women Economic Empowerment and Peace Initiative (BSWEEP), an NGO, has intensified efforts to promote women’s empowerment, peacebuilding and girl-child education across communities in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Hajiya Ruqayya Ibrahim-Kewa, Coordinator of BSWEEP, made this known during a media engagement on Thursday in Abuja.
She emphasised the need to strengthen initiatives that would prevent Gender-Based Violence (GBV), promote girl-child education and support women’s economic empowerment.
Ibrahim-Kewa said the organisation had supported 200 girls in the Jiwa community and 150 women across Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps and women’s groups during recent advocacy visits and community engagements.
She added that plans were underway to establish peacebuilding clubs in selected FCT schools to promote understanding, tolerance and reduce conflicts and violence in society.
“We have trained women in various skills to enable them to earn a livelihood and contribute to the growth and development of society.
“We have also supported improved access to girl-child education and peacebuilding initiatives for national development,” she said.
Hajiya Fatima Abbas-Hassan, a veteran broadcaster and member of the BSWEEP technical team, underscored the need for the media to continue amplifying issues affecting women and girls.
Abbas-Hassan, a former General Manager of NTA News24, said sustained media visibility would help drive necessary actions to address the challenges faced by women and girls.
“As beneficiaries of girl-child education, we feel the need to give back to society.
“There are children who do not have the opportunity to go to school, either due to lack of finances or because their parents are not interested, especially with the current insecurity.
“Some parents, due to economic hardship, prefer to send their children to work as house helps to generate income for the family.
“These young ones are the future of this country. We must invest in their future, help them actualise their full potential and support them to contribute meaningfully to national development,” she said.
Similarly, Hajiya Fatima Nuhu-Gidado, a gender advocate and member of the BSWEEP technical team, said the initiative was working with wives of traditional leaders to end GBV, eliminate harmful traditional practices and promote girl-child education.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event drew media representatives from print, radio, television and online platforms, who pledged to amplify issues related to women’s empowerment and the education of the girl-child. (NAN)
