BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja
Worried by the wobbly inflation rate, a non-governmental organisation, MAMA Centre has demanded for specialised empowerment for women and rightsholders across all sectors of the economy.
The request followed the rising cost of general goods and services, and the negative impact on rightsholders and female-headed households.
News Rider reports that as at April 2024, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) disclosed that the inflation rate rose to 33.69 percent compared to March 2024 inflation rate of 33.20 percent.
The Executive Director of MAMA Centre, Chioma Kanu said over the weekend in Abuja, that women including the rightsholders have been marginalised in all spheres of the economy, as many resorted to poorly-paid employment with little rewards and other benefits.
Rightsholders constitute the vulnerable and socio-economic deprived group, whose families live below poverty line, estimated at $1.90 per person per day in the 2019 World Bank report.
Kanu observed that prior to the rising inflation, women were ridiculed by poverty, economic hardship, discrimination and exploitation including in politics, paid employment and inheritance.
While an estimated 82.1 percent of Nigerian women are deeply rooted in agriculture and small businesses, their earning and financial capacity are trapped in the informal sector where the recurring illegal and multiple taxes and levies crippled their financial capacity and earning progression.
She was worried that despite huge budgetary allocation for various empowerment interventions at national and sub-national levels, such interventions failed to address the socio-economic plight of women.
Kanu added: "More importantly, we further observed that the general rise in the cost of living exposed women to amplified economic and financial burdens especially the female-headed households, which are already rendered incapacitated to provide for themselves and their dependant families.
"This is in addition to the continued physical and emotional abuse that women including the rights-holders endure in their various homes and communities.
"We reiterate our position that gender equality is an imperative for progress on socio-economic emancipation and development in societies across the world, while calling for adequate policy to address the inequalities faced by Nigerian women.
"We uphold that adequate investment in women’s socio-economic empowerment at all levels will set a direct path towards gender equality, poverty eradication and inclusive economic growth in Nigeria; as women contribute tremendously to the economy, whether in businesses, on farms, as entrepreneurs or employees by doing unpaid care work at home."
Just as promoting women’s economic justice and rights and closing gender gaps at the community levels are key to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the executive director hinted that women constitute more than half of the population in most states in Nigeria, and have the requisite skills and talent to contribute to economic development.
She commended the resilience of MAMA Centre’s rightsholders across Udi Local Government of Enugu state under the aegis of Accountability for Empowerment project, supported by Voice Nigeria for their tireless effort at demanding accountability on abandoned livelihood road projects that have the potential to enhance their socio-economic status.
Kanu was perturbed by the existing disparity in women’s access to basic infrastructural services like water especially in the rural areas, where women spend larger part of their productive time shouldering the burden of gathering water and wood for their families.
The centre called on lawmakers to enact a law that would facilitate women’s ownership of ancestral lands, just as it pleaded for an end to unscrupulous tax regime across the States.
She demanded targeted actions and policy intervention that would increase education for the girl-child, and enable them live a secured and productive life.
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