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Mrs. Abimbola Fashola (R) presenting a gift to a recipient during the launch of NAWOCA Local Government Chapters in Lagos Island Division.
Mrs. Abimbola Fashola (R) presenting a gift to a recipient during the launch of NAWOCA Local Government Chapters in Lagos Island Division.Oct 16, 2009 - Lagos First Lady Launches NAWOCA In Lagos Division
• Calls for urgent attention on issues relating to women
The First Lady of Lagos State, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola, at the weekend launched the National Women Coalition on AIDS (NAWOCA) for the Lagos Island Division of the State saying the spread of the scourge could only be checked if all issues relating to women are given urgent attention.
NAWOCA is an initiative of the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Hajia Turia Yar’Adua, as an advocacy aimed at publicly addressing issues that make the female gender more at risk to HIV/AIDS infection.
Mrs. Fashola who spoke at the Lagos Island venue of the launch said the call has become expedient because women and girls are more susceptible to infection due to several factors which make them easy victims to the scourge.
Such factors, the First Lady said, include, their nature as wives which makes them susceptible to infection through the men, poverty and unstable economy and ignorance adding that for any success to be achieved, these issues must be addressed.
“We have to empower the women; we have to encourage them to get lucrative jobs and, above all, we must encourage the women, both young and old, to know their status”, Mrs. Fashola said adding “Studies have shown that women account for the greater number of people falling victims of HIV/AIDS”.
According to her, “It is in realization of this fact the nation’s First Lady Hajia Turia Yar’Adua, initiated NAWOCA with a mandate to all the First ladies of the country to launch same in their states and local government areas.
Lamenting that in spite of the various initiatives and actions taken to raise the awareness of people on HIV, the pandemic has grown to become a serious health issue since 1986, Mrs. Fashola said the initiative was being launched in Lagos Division as an initiative to stem the spread of the scourge in the Division.
The First Lady urged wives of the various local government chairmen under the Division, who are now chairpersons of the Coalition in their Local Government Areas, to seek support and collaboration of policy-makers in the political, social and religious circles, women leaders as well as traditional institutions within the division.
“This is very essential to the success of this initiative because even though women are the primary targets, we need the support of our men and opinion leaders in our communities to strengthen the organization and to achieve our set goals” Mrs. Fashola said.
To chairmen of local government areas in the Division, the First Lady declared, “I am counting on you to take seriously all issues that make women prone to infection and ensure that Lagos State takes the leading position so that we can set example to the rest of the country to ensure the successful implementation of this programme”.
She said Lagos State must draw up a plan of activities in accordance with the objectives of the initiative, prepare evaluation and proper coordination schedule, and submit quarterly progress report by each local government if it must maintain its leading position and achieve the goals of the Coalition, adding that the State must also liaise with the State’s AIDS Control Agency at the local government levels as well as the State Chapter of NAWOCA in order to achieve success.