Ayodele Olalere
Wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Buhari, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Honourable Femi Gbajabiamila, and Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Tuesday, emphasised the need for the enhancement of women capacity for growth of the nation.
At this year’s edition of the annual National Women Conference organised by the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials, COWLSO, holding in Eko Hotel and Suites, Aisha Buhari, Gbajabiamila and Sanwo-Olu told the 3,000 women participants that they need to fortify themselves with knowledge and skills that will make them relevant in modern economy.
At the opening ceremony of the three days conference, the Convener and First Lady of Lagos, Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, said the committee would be investing its energy and resources on implementing projects that specifically aim at strengthening the capacity of women and helping them to build resistance against disabilities that may limit their economic potential.
The event with the theme: “Unlearn, Learn and Re-learn: 21st Century Women’s T.H.E.M.E.S Perspectives/Approach”, was graced by the Wife of the President, Dr. Aishat Buhari, who was represented by wife of the Vice President, Dolapo Osinbajo, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, ex-Lagos First Lady, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu, Governors of Kwara and Ogun states, Mr. Abdulrahaman Abdulrazaq and Mr. Dapo Abiodun.
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In his speech, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said the theme of the conference was aimed at imparting knowledge that would engender value re-orientation and equip women with skills that would make them relevant in the state.
He observed that continuous learning and capacity building remained a potent tool to drive social change, stressing that knowledge or mind-set that stood against the growth of the society must be discarded.
“The goal of this conference is to impart knowledge on all the participants and equip them with relevant skills. The knowledge that will enable them contribute effectively to the collective goal of building and delivering the Lagos we all deserve,” he said.
He added: “Imparting knowledge is not only about adding new knowledge, which is the learning. It is also about reminding ourselves of old and unchanging truths, which is the re-learning. It is important that we discard ways of thinking that are no longer compatible with current realities. If impracticable knowledge is left unchallenged, it can stand in the way of our ability to imbibe and practise new knowledge. This is the un-learning.”
The governor said the appointment of 13 women into key positions in his cabinet is an indication of the value he placed on women, adding empowering women with right skills and given them opportunity to be part of the decision makers, would set the state on the course of irreversible growth, economically and socially.
He stressed the importance of women in achieving his six pillars agenda for Lagos State especially in the area of waste management.
The convener and chairman of COWLSO, Lagos First Lady, Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, said the theme of the conference was strategically chosen to empower women to continue to play important part as pillars of growth and development economically, politically, socially and in all other areas that matter.
“As women, we must strategically position ourselves to take full benefit of the programmes of government. To unlearn means to do away with habits that are outdated and as well jettison practices that are against public good and public safety,” she said.
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She added: “In this 21st Century, women must also embrace new ideas and new innovations to be relevant. Women must learn to think outside the box and even go a step further to think without the box, to fit into the modern society.”
Dr. Sanwo-Olu urged women in the state to key into programmes of the state government in strategic sectors such as health, environment, agriculture, education, and investment opportunities for entrepreneurs.
Wife of the President, Mrs Aisha Buhari, through her representative and wife of Vice President, Dolapo Osinbajo, emphasised the need for wives of political office holders to work towards impacting the lives of the less privileged and vulnerable persons in the society.
“One of the key tenets of COWLSO is the issue of restoration of values. I wish to call on more members to use the opportunity of this event to share ideas about ensuring that our children grow up morally upright, patriotic and with a sense of responsibility. We have a duty to raise better Nigerians,” she said.
In his part, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila eulogised women for their natural ability to influence the society positively, adding that education was vital towards empowering the women
He promised the support of the House of Representatives to continue to leverage legislative process to champion action that would challenge laws that limit women.
The governor of Kwara State, Governor Abdulrazaq, who declared the event open, congratulated members of the Committee for taking “bold steps” towards empowering women and making sacrifice for the development of Lagos.
While delivering his goodwill message, Ogun State governor, Prince Abiodun said COWLSO had been instrumental to the development of Lagos since its establishment, noting that the theme of the conference was one of the ways to change negative narrative against women.
“The theme of the COWLSO conference has offered a template for strategic thinking towards changing negative narratives against women in our country. A 21st century woman must learn and re-learn. To hold a woman back is to hold a society back. Democratic values don’t support the relegation of women,” he said.
