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Borno State Ministry
of women Affiars has, in the last two years, disbursed the sum of
N65million as soft loan to about 8,000 women to alleviate their
poverty and as well as give them a sense of belonging.
Disclosing this in an exclusive interview in Maiduguri, the
Commissioner of Women Affairs Hajiya Maryam Bukar Petrol, explained
that the soft loan was disbursed to the less-privileged women,
mostly widows and the physically challenged in the state.
The commissioner who was full of praises for the governor and his
wife, expressed satisfaction with the level of success so far
recorded, as most beneficiaries were doing well in their small
businesses across the state.
She said the beneficiaries got between N10,000 and N100,000 each and
had been responding positively in servicing the loan which did not
attract any interest and, or collateral.
Hajiya Maryam Bukar Petrol hinted that the ministry had demonstrated
sufficient zeal and commitment in conscientising the women folk to
raise their level of awareness on their legal rights and education
in collaboration with Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) and donor
agencies alike.
She remarked that the Borno woman today was better informed and
educated on her rights as it affected psychological, physical and
economic violence meted to women by their men counterpart in the
society.
The ministry, she added, had been networking with organizations such
as the National Council of Women’s Society (NCWS), Federation of
Muslim women Association of Nigeria (CAN), women wings among others
to improve on empowerment of women.
Meanwhile, Governor Ali Modu Sheriff of Borno State has been
commended for his zeal and determination to empower women by
appointing them into key positions in his administration.
According to the women affairs commissioner, the governor
magnanimously appointed four women as commissioners, the first in
the history of Borno State; three Special Advisers, three Senior
Special Assistants, three General Managers, two Permanent
Secretaries and four ministerial secretaries, as well as three
education secretaries and 88 appointed as councilors in the 27 local
government council care-taker committees.
She said that the mandate of the ministry was to mobilize and
enlighten the women folk to create public awareness and advocacy on
girl-child education enrolment, harmful traditional practices such
as genital mutilation, violence against women and poverty.
On harmful traditional practices, the commissioner said that a
section of women in the state recently staged a protest to reject
the campaign against female genital mutilation, claiming that it was
their culture and therefore did not see anything wrong in it,
despite profuse loss of blood during the exercise and possibility of
contracting HIV/AIDs.
Maryam Bukar Petrol argued that her major challenges had been how to
penetrate the rural women folk who were deeply engrossed in their
culture, despite its harmful implications and used the opportunity
to appeal to parents to give the girl-child a chance to enable her
compete favourably with the boy-child.
She equally expressed satisfaction with the prompt and timely
release of funds to carry out assignments of the ministry and
praised Hajiya Fatima Ali Sheriff, for her support and commitment to
the plight of women and children in the state.
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