Women have struggled against gender discrimination and gender-based violence and subjugation. Across the world, today, women are becoming more engaged in varieties of institutional decision-making processes, thanks to the advocacy and activism of feminist organizations.

In Anambra state, women continue to play significant roles as mothers, home builders, peacemakers, community leaders, civil and church leaders, big business owners, small and medium scale industry owners, entrepreneurs, Administrators, educators etc. They have for sometime now shown significant presence in the Anambra political landscape and are representing our state effectively in all spheres.

Going forward, we shall as government support and expand women’s engagement by paying attention to gender inclusiveness. We will:

1. Ensure that women’s participation in all sectors of our state economy is very visible. We shall increase their participation as leaders in government and in various policy making bodies. We will not only achieve the 35 percent affirmative action quota, but exceed it in their appointment as leaders in government.
2. Women Empowerment:
   We will make women the arrow head of our empowerment programme in Anambra State.
   We shall:
   a. Build our agricultural programme around them and allocate substantial parts of our Farm Estates, Fish Farm Estates, Poultry Farm Estates, to women and provide grants for them to ensure effective take-off and management.
   b. Cottage Industries: Women will be the cornerstone of our support in the establishment of cottage industries in all local governments of the State. We shall arrange them in clusters of five and support them in owning and managing a cottage Industry.
   c. Cooperative Schemes – Women in rural parts of Anambra shall be organized to form Cooperatives. We shall train and provide them with credit schemes to empower them. They shall be encouraged to involve themselves in bulk procurement of goods and reselling them for profit. The Cooperative bodies shall be made to participate in agriculture, leveraging on facilities at the various Farm Estates to develop their businesses. They may be trained to invest in areas such as Palm kernel Oil processing, Bread making, fish farming, floor making etc. Members of each cooperative scheme shall work together to peer review themselves.
   d. Micro Lending Scheme: This system will help the people in the rural areas establish or participate in a microcredit scheme. It is my belief that access to credit is a fundamental human right. Besides, if you lend poor people money on terms that are suitable to them, teach them a few sound financial principles, they will grow to help themselves.
   e. Enterprises Development: There are a number of educated women in the rural areas who can be empowered to establish their business enterprises. They may first be trained on how to save capital and on good corporate governance. The graduates of this enterprise training programmes may be exposed to buying Franchises or establish entirely new businesses which can be guided to grow with time.
   f. Since we are developing all village markets, the allocation of shops and sheds is expected to favour women as majority of them in rural areas are traders.
3. Skill Acquisition
   We will ensure that women are trained in various skill acquisition techniques to help them do well in various intervention support which government plans to make available to them. Our plan is to use town unions, church organizations, market women organization, to schedule periodic skill acquisition and entrepreneurship trainings for women in the State.
4. ICT and Digital Transformation.
   There shall be a deliberate policy to increase the women participation in ICT and digital Transformation. We shall give women and young girls opportunities to be part of massive ICT training and in the establishment of Startup clusters under the Startup Anambra initiative.
5. Leadership Trainings, Mentorship and Political Participation.
   My government shall encourage regular training of women on leadership skills and political participation. This programme on personal development will help to upscale Anambra Women and enlarge their worldview on politics and leadership. Our Ministry of Women Affairs shall appoint trainer and mentorship coaches to constantly interact with women leaders across the State.
   We want to encourage more women to aspire for political offices in our State

Join us, let’s go to work.
It’s possible.

innovateanambra

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