Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has outlined a series of initiatives aimed at empowering women, enhancing environmental sustainability, and supporting vulnerable communities across the country.
The various programs which would be executed through the Renewed Hope Initiative, RHI include the “Flow with Confidence” initiative, which will see the distribution of disposable sanitary pads to girls nationwide, ensuring they can remain in school during their menstrual cycles.
Under this initiative, each state, including the FCT, will receive 10,000 cartons of disposable sanitary pads.
Senator Oluremi Tinubu also emphasized environmental sustainability which she said is necessitating the establishment of climate change clubs in secondary schools and tertiary institutions of learning.
She said the goal is to get the students more involved in climate change and waste management as well as ultimately having a recycling plant in each state, promoting waste management and reducing plastic pollution.
“We don’t have to be intimidated by the quantity of waste we see around us but we must get going and do something about it”.
“We are starting now”.
She pointed out that the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), will be supporting 250 persons with disabilities in each state with a N200,000 grant to recapitalize their already existing businesses.
While reeling out some of the achievements of the RHI in the last 2 years, she noted that the initiative has made significant impact in the areas of empowering women farmers, providing scholarships to indigent students, provision of Professional kits to Midwives in the North Central and North West Geo-political zones, provision of relief materials and funds to victims of disasters across the country, ICT training for women across the country, building of Alternative High School for Girls, supporting the Elderly and providing food items to vulnerable groups among others.
Fielding questions from journalist after the opening session of the first quarter meeting with wives of governors, Senator Oluremi Tinubu emphasized the importance of collective effort in driving national development.
On her priorities for the year, the First Lady stated that everything in the nation must be prioritized.
“Everything, everything, there is no priority. It depends on like the flow with confidence initiative, we still have to manufacture the sanitary towels so, and we’re trying to produce locally, which is going to create jobs and put money in our economy.”
“We want the students from tertiary institutions that are especially in the faculty of environment, and I believe that they want to see even in those in biological sciences.”
She said there is a need for a “can-do spirit” among young people, urging them to work towards achieving their goals.
“Hard work is one of the tenets, that you know, took us out of poverty”.
“Faith without works is dead. Go and work, work for this country. Let this country grow.”
Also in attendance at the meeting was the Wife of the Vice President and National Vice Chairman of RHI Hajia Nana Shettima and wife of the Chief of Staff to the President and Board Member of RHI, Mrs Salamatu Gbajabiamila
