By Favour Ulebor, Abuja

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reassured commitment to advancing women’s empowerment and gender equality in Nigeria.

Speaking on Tuesday at the Women Affairs Ministry’s Empower-Her: Nigeria for Women Farming, Health, Empowerment, Justice, Entertainment and Fund-raising Dinner at the State House, Abuja, the President emphasised the importance of addressing challenges women face.

The initiative, which is aimed at creating an enabling environment for women to fulfill their potential, received presidential endorsement as President Tinubu urged government and private sectors to join hands and support the programme.

Represented by Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, President Tinubu acknowledged the crucial role women play in agriculture, contributing over 70% of the labor force, and stressed the need for investment in agricultural training, access to land, and financial services for women farmers.

This, he believes, will increase their yield, improve livelihoods, and contribute to Nigeria’s food security.

He also highlighted health disparities affecting women and girls, with a focus on increasing access to quality healthcare, education, and economic opportunities.

He said strengthening institutions, promoting gender-sensitive policies, and supporting women’s rural organizations are essential to ensuring women have access to justice and protection from violence and discrimination.

Also speaking at the event, Chairman of the United Bank for Africa (UBA), Tony Elumelu, emphasized the importance of empowering women in Nigeria.

Represented by UBA’s CEO, Oliver Alawuba, Elumelu praised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s leadership in promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Elumelu also acknowledged First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu’s advocacy and Minister of Women Affairs Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye’s commitment to addressing gender inequality.

He highlighted the crucial role women play in agriculture, contributing over 70% of the labor force, yet facing challenges in accessing resources.

UBA’s commitment to gender equality was evident in its 50% female board representation, 40% female senior management, and 59% female graduate management trainees.

The bank has also provided 78% of its working capital loans to women-led businesses.

Elumelu stressed that empowering women is not only morally right but also economically beneficial, citing the potential $12 trillion increase in global GDP by 2025 if the gender gap is closed.

He urged collective action from individuals, organizations, and the private sector to support women’s empowerment.

In her remarks, the Minister for Women Affairs and Social Development, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye said the funds raised would acquire two buses in each state, starting with the Federal Capital Territory and Nasarawa State, adding that one of the buses would serve as the mobile court, while the other would be used to take girls off the street.

“So, one of the buses will be the moving mobile court, while the other one will be the raiding bus. Where am I starting? I’m starting by taking my children from the streets. I can’t continue leaving them there while men are defiling them. Every day I get one case or the other, I shed tears. My heart is broken.

“You see a three-year-old, the father, has defiled her. You see a four-year-old, the teacher has defiled her, sodomised her. She’s leaking everywhere, she’s had fistula disease for four years. These are verifiable, and somebody is telling me, fold your hands and wait for their bottlenecks.’ Let Nigerians die before your bottlenecks are over. I decided to take the bold step to raise the money I wanted to work with. So the mobile court will pick those girls,” she added.