25 Women To Benefit from Mercy Ogbuehi Foundation Skills Empowerment Programme

A Lagos based non- governmental organization (NGO), Mercy Ogbuehi Widows & Orphans Foundation, has said it will be empowering 25 women as part of their skill acquisition programme.

The foundation at the forthcoming graduation ceremony will mark the success of one of its just concluded training sessions within the year 2024.

Interacting with journalists in Lagos recently, the Founder/President, Barr. Nnenna Uchegbu, said the privileged ones in the society must contribute to the support of people in need with livelihood skills.

She noted that the organisation would continue to.close up gaps as much as possible to widows, orphans and the less privileged ones in the society.

According to her, “That is why at this graduation ceremony the foundation will be providing several equipment to our trainees. Fashion department total number of 12 (8 widows to be empowered with hand sewing machine). While 13 trainees were trained on computer literacy skills. So a total number of 25 people will be graduating.”

However, she also noted that in the past they have empowered a total of 267 widows in their respective field of training, through yearly empowerment programmes for widows and orphans in various skill acquisition.

She revealed that having seen the gaps, the foundation through inspiration by God has decided to do its best to support widows and orphans in the society.

According to her, “What we are doing is because there is a gap. If you look at other developed countries, they have social welfare benefits for people who are disadvantaged. But it happens that in some countries like Nigeria, widows are the most disadvantaged because of the culture. A widow here is not regarded as somebody in some of our communities.

“They accuse her, maybe she killed her husband. Or maybe it’s the bad luck that she brought that killed her husband. So there’s no shelter for her, no provision for her. And the government doesn’t have resources or enough resources to help them. And if the mainstay of the family is the man, who is now gone. And the woman is not working, she’s left with the children and herself. So what happens to her? If the government doesn’t have resources or apply resources to help her.

“And her husband’s family, maybe they don’t have or they don’t want to help, what does she do? And the churches, you know that better than me whether they are doing as they should. It is inevitable, but some women are not working or trading; one, because they stay home to take care of the children and the family. So during these productive years, it’s difficult for a woman to apply herself.”

For the the Public Relations Officer of the NGO, Mrs. Judith Obaze, the vision was to meet the needs of widows, orphans and the less privileged in the community through their operations and beyond.

She stated that the programme is a yearly empowerment programme where beneficiaries are trained in Catering, Computer literacy, Fashion and Beauty as well as Event planning, Industrial and handcraft which runs between six months and one year duration.