INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY: ABIA GOV’S WIFE, OTHERS, ENCOURAGE GIRL-CHILD TO ACQUIRE ICT SKILLS, RELEVANT KNOWLEDGE

REPORTER: EJIOFOR UMEGBOGU

As the world commemorates International women’s day 2022, the wife of Abia State Governor, Mrs. Nkechi Ikpeazu, has advised young girls to acquire ICT skills as a key to promoting women’s rights and gender equality.

Mrs. Ikpeazu gave the piece of advice in a message to a women’s summit in Umuahia, the Abia State capital.

Represented by the wife of the Deputy Governor, Mrs. Vivian Oko-Chukwu, the Abia State First Lady stated that equipping the girl child with ICT skills had become imperative in breaking the circle of poverty among women and liberating the girl child, as well as dismantling the gender stereotypes in the society.

She argued that a better-educated girl child would grow into a better-informed woman with modern skills to empower her, make progressive contributions to society and impact positively on the generations yet unborn.

In her speech, a women’s rights advocate, Ms. Norah Okafor, said the event was organised to create a safe space for young girls to express themselves and receive help on practical solutions to their numerous challenges.

She called on mothers to strive towards empowering their girl children with the right information that would enable them to explore their potential.

“We have come to talk about what we can do to become better and make a positive impact on the society through understanding our gifts and talents,” she added.

In an address, the Chairperson of the Enugu State Gender-based Violence Committee, Mrs. Onyinyechi Mamah, said that the right knowledge about gender balancing must be controlled by the family.

Mrs. Mamah maintained that gender stereotypes seen in society stemmed from the family, as the female gender is made to consciously and subconsciously accept and imbibe negative stereotypes.

Also, a medical practitioner, Dr. Ifeoma Kalu, urged girls to be assertive but not being aggressive.

Dr. Kalu stressed that self-esteem and self self-respect remained potent measures for tackling all forms of Women’s rights abuses, whether domestic, sexual, academic or workplace abuses.

She identified the adverse effect of abuses both in the short term and long term, and explained that the best way to deal with it was to speak out and seek help from professionals.