- * Advocates Equal Healthcare
By Mohammed Nasir Shuaibu (Bauchi State Correspondent)
As Nigeria joins the rest of the world to mark the year 2024 International Women Day, (IWD) celebration, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Mama2Mama has called on all stakeholders to end the stereotypes that hold women and adolescent girls bound from reaching their potentials.
The UNICEF Communication Officer, Bauchi field office, Tushar Rane, made the called while presenting his objectives, methodology and expected outcomes of the media dialogue to mark 2024 International Women's Day in Gombe state, said there was need for more inclusive and equitable world for women and adolescent girls. He said this call cannot be over emphasized, particularly the need to shed the suffocating stereotypes, stigmas, and discrimination that keep women and adolescent girls worldwide from realizing their true potential and succeeding.
He said for this year’s celebration UNICEF and Mama2Mama has planned engaging and purposeful conversations with Nigerian women through Mama2Mama support groups volunteers across it’s five states of operation including Bauchi, Gombe, Taraba, now in Adamawa and Platuea states respectively.
The UNICEF Communication Officer, acknowledged the incredible strides women have made towards equal rights, including access to healthcare, while remembering that the world still has a long way to go before women are empowered, safe, and healthy worldwide.
According to him, the engagements with the women at these locations will empower women to take charge of their health while overcoming barriers to help them thrive in their future.
He said Nigeria’s International Women’s Day event also include Continuous Health Education (CME) by UNICEF, Mama2Mama state teams and psycho-social coping mechanisms to empower the women and enhance their resilience in the face of the daunting challenges many are faced with today.
‘’The need for more inclusive and equitable world for women and adolescent girls cannot be over emphasized, particularly the need to shed the suffocating stereotypes, stigmas, and discrimination that keep women and girls worldwide from realizing their true potential and succeeding.
He quoted the chief of field office, UNICEF Bauchi field office Nigeria, Tushar Rane as saying that “Adolescent girls’ rights worldwide are under threat, with progress on key issues either stagnating or regressing on a global scale. In the face of challenges such as the ongoing global economic crisis, political turmoil, and humanitarian emergencies, adolescent girls are often overlooked, exploited, or placed in precarious situations.
Thus important to ensure that women have all they need to succeed, including equal access to health care, education, and employment,” NNL.
