Anthonia Duru
To improve the mental wellness of young girls and women, end all forms of violence against women, Initiative for Women and Girls Right Advancement (IWOGRA), a non-governmental organization with support from ‘Purposeful’ in Abuja recently held a One-Day Capacity Building Training.
The Capacity training which also meditation/yoga exercise was centered around young girls and women between the ages of 12 and 30 that have undergone one form of gender-based violence and helped them in letting go of the hurt, overcoming the traumas, and improving well-being of mind and body.
IWOGRA implemented these activities under the second phase of the Global Resilience Fund for Girls and Young Women Project which seeks to achieve collective care/wellbeing and healing for girls and young women by improving the ability of girls and young women to respond to challenging situations, place emphasis on joint accountability, with the aim of collective empowerment and healing.
According to the Executive Director of IWOGRA, Nkechi Obiagbaoso-Udegbunam, the organization is implementing the project in the Piwoyi community, Abuja. At the start of the project, IWOGRA paid a courtesy visit to the traditional leader of the community and got his buy-in as regards engaging a group of girls and young women to be able to build up resilience and improve their physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing.
As a follow-up to the courtesy visit, IWOGRA held a workshop for the girls and young women of the selected community on ‘ending violence, improving mental health and wellness of girls and young women with the aim of building their capacity on the importance of caring about the welfare of their members, especially their emotional and mental health. The training was conducted by the Executive Director of IWOGRA, Nkechi Obiagbaoso-Udegbunam, a human rights lawyer and gender expert. She extensively sensitized the girls and young women on what violence against women and girls mean, various types of violence women and girls experience, why violence against women and girls exists,s and their consequences. She took the participants through a series of fun activities and group works which focuses on helping the participants connect with their past, relieving themselves of the hurt they feel, and moving on with their lives happier and healthier.
She urged the girls and young women to come together and support each other to combat these violence/abuses against girls and young women and serve as a support system to each other and to survivors of violence. She encouraged the girls and young women to be physically and emotionally available for each other, especially when going through any form of violence or abuse.
Subsequently, IWOGRA organized a meditation/yoga exercise for the selected girls and young women at the National Children’s Park and Zoo, Asokoro, Abuja. The purpose of the meditation/yoga exercise is to provide a space for healing and rejuvenation for girls and young women who are undergoing trauma, mental and emotional instability by exploring healing justice and to use art and sport for the integration of healing as collective practices. The yoga instructor led the participants through series of yoga activities that helps them in relaxing their minds and bodies to aid meditation and improve their wellbeing.
At the end of the yoga exercise, brief sightseeing and picnic was done for the participants to enable them connect and be fully rejuvenated. Some of the participants expressed how they feel stating that the training and yoga exercise has taught them how to better relate with other girls and young women, made them feel relieved, bold and confident. Some said the engagement has improved their moods greatly and they hope to continue the meditation/yoga exercise on their own.
