THREE hundred women have gained certification from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) through the International Labour Centre (ILC) in an ICT skills training facilitated by the Institute of Export Operations and Management (IEOM) in Port Harcourt, Rivers state.

The development was part of the 2026 International Women’s Day (IWD) celebration by the IEOM in the Rivers state capital with the three day capacity building aligning with the focus on empowering women.

Dr Mercy Odibe, Coordinator of the scheme and Head, IEOM) said, “We decided to train 300 women entrepreneurs for this IWD.

The first two days were for training on digital skills. And they were certified by the ILO and ILC.

“We awarded certificates and honored women outstanding in their fields. Ultimately, everything we did and what we’ve been doing is just to empower women, ensure their businesses move from point ‘A’ to point ‘B’, till they get to where they expect to be.

“We want women, as many as possible, to be aware of this initiative and try to reach out to more people. That’s one of the reasons we’ve been looking for people to partner with both local and international partners. With collaboration, we’ll be able to reach out to more people.”

To women entrepreneurs she admonished, “There’s opportunity for you to move out there and be who you want to be. You can’t be that person if you stay, isolate yourself. 

“Collaboration is the key. Come out there, partner with people. And there is the Port Harcourt Empower Hearth Cooperative Society, big enough to accommodate and support everyone moving people from local to international markets.”

Dr Ofon Udofia, Executive Secretary of the export institute, said, “We’ve been doing this for past three years. As a result we decided to put up a sustainable programme for women, not only the cooperative, but also brought in women from the hearing impaired group, people with disability, so that trade can be inclusive.

“This year with the theme ‘Give-to-Gain’,  we are giving to women. This programme is not just a celebration, it’s a foundation, a calling ongoing, that women should be able to support participants

Participants and awardees in their appraisal acknowledged learning about legal protection in the economic and digital space and informed that as women and business owners they should have insurance, health insurance cover.

“We learnt the different e-commerce platforms we can use to trade and build connections. At the exhibition stand, we saw different products from different companies and small business owners.”

Emanuella Edut, Regional Manager, Sonja School Africa, and Director, Puri Reel noted,  “I think young women should just focus on the journey and the destination will be ahead of them. They can just do anything, push for excellence and they will achieve it.”