Bashir Hassan Abubakar
Attah Sisters Helping Hand (ASHH) Foundation has intensified advocacy for community-driven women empowerment initiatives with a stakeholders’ engagement held recently at the palace of the Village Head of Yelwan Kumdum , a suburb within Bauchi Metropolis.
The meeting, attended by community leaders, women, youths and persons with disabilities, was aimed at securing grassroots support for the implementation of the “Renewed Women’s Voice and Leadership Project” funded by Global Affairs Canada through ActionAid Nigeria.
The Foundation stressed the need for collective ownership and active participation of community stakeholders to ensure the sustainability of development interventions targeted at vulnerable women and girls.
Speaking during the engagement, the Programme Manager of ASHH Foundation, Joseph Sule explained that the organisation, a women-led and human rights-focused group established in 2010, has consistently championed programmes that improve the livelihoods of women through economic empowerment initiatives.
He disclosed that the new project would empower 30 women with skills in groundnut oil processing through the establishment of a processing hub equipped with modern machines to serve both beneficiaries and the wider community at subsidized rates.
The Foundation also appealed to community leaders to provide secure land for the installation of the facility, describing the project as a collective asset that requires community protection and support.
In his remarks, the Village Head of Yelwan Kumdum, Alhaji Nasiru Hussani, commended ASHH Foundation, Global Affairs Canada and ActionAid Nigeria for selecting the community for the intervention, assuring them of the community’s full cooperation, including the provision of land for the project.
Community leaders and women representatives used the occasion to seek clarification on beneficiary selection and market opportunities for processed products.
Responding, Sule assured participants that transparent criteria would guide the selection process with priority given to the most economically vulnerable women, while efforts would also be made to connect beneficiaries with buyers in Bauchi metropolis to enhance sustainability and improve household incomes.
0 Comments