Group to empower 120 widows in S’East, Monday

A Non-Governmental Organisation, Virtuous Widows Association has reiterated its commitment to widows empowerment with skills acquisition programme scheduled to commence at Anambra Newspapers and Printing Corporation (ANPC)’s premises on Monday, December 2.

  The founder of the organisation, Beatrice Egbosiuba in an interview with National Light’s reporters disclosed that the one-week event scheduled to last from December 2nd to December 9, 2019, is designed to bring widows in the South East region together and share robust mind on ways of empowering them for their self reliance.

  “This organisation has been in existence for over five years. It started in Lagos and we currently have our offices in Lagos, Abuja and Kano States. We have been in the fore-front of providing support to the widows through empowerment programmes. We have chosen this engagement because we understand clearly what it means to be a widow in our society.

  Widows pass through a lot of horrendous experiences and we want to put a stop to their woes and give them back reason to live happily again after losing their partners.

  We have been doing this in the northern and western parts of Nigeria over the past five and half years of the organisation’s existence. Now, we want to bring it home to South East, to let them savour the inherent prospects of quality care this group strives to affect the windows with.”

  Narrating the ordeals of the windows, Egbosiuba lamented that they (windows) are most often left to cater for the family singlehandedly after the death of their husbands even when such responsibility may not have been easy when both couple shared the responsibility.

  “You will agree with me that some of the windows get weakened by the death of their partners. Being faced with the challenges of keeping the family all alone, paying for rent, children’s school fees and other bills that line up for them, they usually get weighed down by this enormous responsibility. Before you know it, the, person becomes overwhelmed by pressure and resorts to begging.

  But I want to tell them that widowhood is not inevitable banishment into misery.”

  She emphasised that with the seminar they conduct for the windows which is coming to South East, this time, specifically at ANPC premises, in Awka, Anambra State (behind government house), the windows would be engaged in learning various skills that will help them move away from wretch.

  The Virtuous Widows Association founder assured that knowledge from the seminar will help rebuild their faith in themselves as they will be taught many production techniques, such as, garri processing, detergent making and many other things that will help boost their finances and make them self sufficient.

  “We will share to the widows sewing machines, grinding machines, among othersdepending on what the person is good in, with regard to the knowledge acquired during the seminar.”

  She stated that  the number of widows captured for empowerment on this seminar is 120 women and appealed to individuals, groups and  government to support them in the project.

  She added that the selection of the 120 beneficiaries cuts across all the various zones in the state with special incentives to people from the riverine areas.

  Egbosiuba enumerated the dignitaries expected to grace the occassione to include, Anambra State Governor’s wife, Ebelechukwu Obiano, Delta State Governor’s wife, professors, doctors monarchs, philanthropists and all who are concerned with plight of the windows in the society.