Benin city – Lift Above Poverty Organisation (LAPO), a leading poverty focused development institution, yesterday, issued a 10-point communique to mark the 2016 International Women’s Day with a call on all stakeholders to take urgent steps towards creating a world with gender balanced leadership, respect and value.
The global theme for the 2016 International Women’s Day is “pledge for parity, planet 50-50 by 2030, step it up for Gender Equality” with LAPO’s sub-theme, “Advancing Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women.”
The Forum chaired by Professor Agatha Eguavoen of the Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma, drew participants from all facets of national life who exhaustively discussed the paper entitled. “Advancing Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women,” presented by Prof. Nkolika Aniekwe of the Faculty of Law, University of Benin (UNIBEN).
The Executive Director, LAPO, Sabina Idowu-Osehobo, the Chairperson, LAPO Board of Directors, Prof. Christiana Okojie, Edo State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Aanena Jemitola Fulani-Ojo and Hon. Elizabeth Ativie of Edo State House of Assembly were also among distinguished personalities at the event who delivered their separate addresses to reflect on the theme of the International Women’s Day.
The 10-point communiqué issued at the end of the ceremony, among others, commended LAPO for promoting the interest and rights of women and the under privileged in the society through social and health empowerment programmes.
It lauded LAPO for empowering 586,000 women with social and health empowerment services in 2015, including 3,247 women sensitised on the dangers and solutions available for abused women and girls and 31 female rape victims who received free legal aid.
The forum urged women to move from the realm of talk to action and from rhetoric to realities and recommended the doctrine of necessity to bridge the gap between gender inequality, discrimination and abuse. It denounced the recent abduction, abuse and forced marriage of 14-year old Ese Oruru by one Yunusa and called for a proper and diligent prosecution to serve as deterrent to others.
Participants at the forum also urged women to be supportive of fellow women as well as believe in themselves towards achieving gender parity and equity, just as it enjoined women to be self-reliant, bold in asserting their rights at all times.
It noted that gender parity must be attained before 2030 to avert the sluggish progress that condemns a child born today to wait 80 years before seeing an equal world.
