AS the much anticipated Africa Fashion Week Nigeria (AFWN) 2016, begins tomorrow, July 1, the organisers have revealed that about 60 designers from across Africa, will be showcasing their latest designs at this year’s event, set to be one of the biggest fashion shows in Africa. With the theme ‘’Connecting Africa’’ this year’s event which holds from July 1-3, takes off tomorrow with the Textile and Garment Manufacturing Conference, to hold at the Eko Hotels and Suites Victoria Island.

HOW did you get started? I started out with a shop at home. At that point, I was working with Texaco. But then being a US citizen, I had my children abroad and on one of the trips when I came to Nigeria, I decided to buy things and within two days everything was gone. That is how my eyes opened to the fact that I could run a business. My husband did not want his children with nannies until they were able to talk. I started with 300 dollars and the business began to multiply itself. I get along with people easily. I am flexible and I make sure my customers are happy. Referral has been our biggest advertisement because of the good experiences that customers have had.

AS part of activities marking this year’s International Widows’ Day, no fewer than 600 widows are presently undergoing a four-week skills acquisition training at no cost, at the Women Development Centre in Lagos, The training is being organised by the state Ministry for Women’s Affairs & Poverty alleviation, WAPA. Speaking at a symposium preceding the flag-off of the empowerment exercise, Commissioner, WAPA, Hon.(Mrs) Lola Akande, identified widowhood as a catalyst to poverty, explaining that it is because of this notion that the state government thought it pertinent to initiate the on-going 4-week training; to ensure widows in the state became self-reliant.

THE rite of mourning the demise of a husband in Nigeria has for a very long time been taken to the extreme by the relatives of the dearly departed either because they have plans of punishing the grieving widow or for other reasons best known to themselves.

WIDOWS in Lagos State have been advised to acquire vocational skills and play an active role in politics, to fully engage themselves, upon the death of their spouses. The advice came from Mrs. Bolanle Ambode, wife of the governor of the state, while delivering the keynote address at an event in Surulere, Lagos, organized by the Rose of Sharon Foundation, to mark the 2016 International Widows Day.

Businesses are created out of problems. Saudat Salami is the founder of Easyshop Easycook an online business that delivers customized domestic services to the working professional who is too busy to go for shopping due to timing challenges. She revealed how she started in an interview. “I.T fascinated me at a young age and I was good at it, but if you want to be a programmer or developer you have to be ready to upgrade your certification regularly, learn new coding skills otherwise you’d easily be obsolete and I was not ready to do that.

IT is apparent that lack of training and apathy in parenting is the root of most problems in the country ranging from juvenile delinquency to corruption, violence and all forms of abuses. At a recent national parenting conference, tagged, “Critical Rescue”, it was argued that what parents and stakeholders put into children, is what they will get in return and as such there was an urgent need to rescue the recent crop of youths from destruction., writes Etop Ekanem:

“When I was in Ikeja, most of my customers were runs girls (commercial sex workers). Some of them can entice you when they don’t have money to pay for their hair. But if you have self-control, you can easily tell them to come pay when they have the money. Doing pedicure is even worse. You must have self-control to be able to ignore when a woman’s laps are exposed in the course of you treating her feet. I cannot mix work with pleasure. So, I just had to develop a thick skin.

MUSIC sensation and Glo brand ambassador, Waje has joined leading cookery personality Chef Eros, and Jamie Oliver, as they recently unveiled food revolution day in Dowen College, Lagos. The event which was launched last month amidst fanfare of celebrities, with live cooking demonstration was aimed at ensuring that children below the ages of 20 are properly fed.“

Vice-President, Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport International, CILT, Ibrahim Abubakar Jibril, has called on womenfolk to identify and take up careers in the logistics and transport industry to facilitate growth in the economy. The logistics and transport industry is one traditionally-male terrain which only started to feel the vibes of womenfolk recently, leading to the formation of a women’s wing now known as Women in Logistics & Transport, WILAT, by female members of CILT Nigeria, comprising the aviation, maritime, road, rail and logistics industries.

WOMEN seeking liberation, empowerment, and transformation will have unlimited access to it through the new online Television by Stronger VesselsNetwork which is set to provide succor the women.“The platform, which is called More Than a Woman, will particularly reach out to women from all walks of life, who are enduring a difficult phase or have been through a painful experience.“

READY for your next baby…. Timing for your next pregnancy is purely up to you but in most cases, you have no control over when it happens. Sometimes, no matter how careful you are or no matter the type of family planning you do, when its time, it’s just time. A lot of women who start having their children late really do not have the luxury of spacing their children too far apart for risk of complications during pregnancies.

AS the incessant abuse of underage girls and women continues unabated in the country, the Assistant Inspector General of Police, AIG, Zone 2 Headquarters Onikan Lagos, Bala Abdullahi Hassan, has said that the protection of girls and women is one of the main priorities of the police. Hassan also urged Nigerians to support the police in all ramifications by giving adequate information to the police about suspected perpetrators noting that silence by the victims of molestation will not solve the issues.

She said: “Dr. Ongile has been somebody who demonstrated her heartfelt service to women and Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, in Nigeria. “She is one personality I will live to remember because she is always ready to make time out for the vulnerable and cause of women.” Saraki, who is founder and initiator of Well Being Africa, was full of commendation and said Ongile will be welcomed to Nigeria anytime she feels like visiting.

There are days when you look at everything and you think, ‘why am I still here?’ Its a lot of things and one of them is that I take pride in my work. I was one of those few who were lucky early on in life to know what I wanted to do. I had friends who have been in banking for 20 years then they now suddenly come out and start their passion, whether it is event planning or whatever.