Over 300 women in Unguwan Kudu, Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, on Wednesday decried continued neglect of the community, and called on Gov. Nasiru El-Rufai to provide a skills training centre for them to learn skills and be self reliant.
The women, who are members of the community’s Womanhood Forum, said the intervention was necessary, to equip them and other members of the community to break away from the cycle of poverty they found themselves.
Their leader, Mrs Sadiya Nasir, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at the village on Wednesday that a skills acquisition centre will add tremendous value to the lives of members of the community, not just women.
She stressed that by empowering the women a lot of issues such as access to education for children and health care will be easier to manage.
The woman leader also urged government to offer soft loan to members of the forum.
“We have never benefited from any gesture or asistance from the state government or any organization.
“We are also calling on NGOs to come to our aid and teach our women how to empower themselves so as to be self reliant and assist our children and husbands.
“Assisting us will also create employment and reduce poverty in the community,“ Mrs Nasir said.
According to her, in spite of the challenges facing them, women under the forum support each other and also assist widows, orphans and the less privileged, whenever the need arises.
“We also buy books and other writing materials for children in school to support our kids to get education,“ she said.
Mrs Nasir appealed to the state assembly to prevail on the state government to site any meaningful project in the community as they prepare the 2020 budget.
“Our Councillor has been assisting us from time to time but there are enoumous challenges affecting the community he cannot handle,“she said.
(NAN)