Dr Adepeju Oti, Executive Director, Global Youth Leadership and Girl-child Foundation, said the NGO had empowered more than 600 girls in Ibadan through mentorship.
Oti disclosed this on Wednesday in Ibadan at the Raising Girls Ambition (RAGA) Award and Prize presentation at the Ministry of Education Conference Hall.
She said that the vision of the NGO has been to help the girl-child complete her education and economically empower her either through paid employment or having a business of her own.
“For them to be part of a responsive and responsible Nigerian community, we realised that without education, which is the bedrock, most people can’t go anywhere.
“She (the girl-child) needs to know her left from her right.
“We don’t want to raise girls who cannot stand up for themselves, this is why we have come as an organisation to focus on the girl-child and encourage her in her education and other related things.
“We engage them in co-curricular and extra curricular activities that will prepare them for that competition in the real world,’’ she said.
Oti explained that the annual international interdisciplinary conference on RAGA held in 2020 and more than 600 girls were impacted positively but the prize and award ceremony was delayed till now due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is the second of a series that started in 2020. What we are doing today is to bring all the winners at RAGA 2020 event; the debate, the essay, the creative arts and other competition together and give them prizes so that they know that they are being recognised.
“We want the Ministry of Education to know that there is a group of people working in tandem with the government and we are helping the government to handle parts of their responsibility.
”Government is not just the governor but all of us together,” Oti said.
Some of the awardees were Prof Jide Owoeye, Proprietor of the Lead City University, Mrs Charlotte Sanginga wife of the IITA director and Dr Olu Ojedokun, a lecturer of politics and international relations at Lead City University.
Mrs Magaret Olaoluwa, who represented Charlotte Sanginga, wife of the IITA director enjoined the beneficiaries of RAGA to pass on the knowledge gained to other girls.
“Tell other girls about the essence of reading, believing in oneself, the essence of being busy and not lazy.
“Encourage those that can be encouraged, don’t think they cannot listen. If you think you cannot talk to them, show them examples by your conduct, she said.
Ojedokun remarked:“Our society will not be complete until every girl has the same ambition as the boys of her age, that is what the programme is meant to do.”
One of the beneficiaries of RAGA, Kimberley Dirisu, a student of the Lead City School, Ibadan, said she had attended the RAGA conference for three years and had learned something new each time. (NAN)
