The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Careers

  • How work demands discourage women from breastfeeding

    Before the rose-pink light of dawn, by 4:30 am precisely, Bola Dare is already awake to prepare for the day’s job. The 29-year-old, who works in an electrical engineering servicing company, has to sacrifice the sweetness of sleep to do her chores and perform childcare duties on her four-month-old baby every working day of the week.

    “I never imagined combining my job and motherhood would be this tough. Getting to work from the outskirts of Lagos on a daily basis takes not less than three hours (to and fro). I get home tired, pick my baby at the crèche and run to prepare dinner before catching a short sleep. I can’t afford a house help. My husband tries to help but he also goes through the same rigour with his micro- finance bank job,” she lamented.

    Like many young women, Bola never anticipated this daunting demand of motherhood, even though she had looked forward to becoming a mother. When she gave birth to a baby girl in the month of April, she leaned on the support of her mum, who was around to care for the baby and help with house chores. Then, she had done exclusive breast-feeding for her baby. Things went on as planned until she was jolted to a sad reality; her mother had to leave to cater for her younger sister, who gave birth to twins through a caesarean section.

    As her 12 weeks maternity leave drew closer, the thought of exclusive breast-feeding had waned and the reality of juggling her demanding job as a supervisor in the factory section of the electrical company had set in. According to her, she struggles to hold back tears when she drops her baby at the crèche by 6: 30 am.  The earliest time she returns to pick the baby from the crèche is around 7:00 pm since work closes at 5:00 pm.

    “My baby spends 12 hours at the crèche.  The thought that she feeds more on baby formula wounds my heart.  I was only allowed a one-month shortened closing time after I resumed from maternity leave. The fear that I am not bonding enough with my baby is also killing me, but I don’t have a choice because I can’t afford to be jobless at this time,” she told The Nation.

    Bola’s story is the same for many Nigerian women who have to juggle the stress of work with catering to their children. It is a peculiar case of hardship in a chaotic city like Lagos, where nursing mothers, who also have thriving careers, hardly get enough sleep; they are forced to wake up early to beat the traffic jam owing to the chaotic nature of the city’s disorganized transport system.

    The case for breastfeeding is also saddened by the fact that paid parental leave is not in full enforcement in the private sector, which accounts for the highest percentage of employment in Nigeria.

    Back in the days, Exclusive Breast Feeding (EBF) was a walk over for many Nigerian nursing mothers who were mostly full-time housewives. Now with the economic realities, which demands both husbands and wives to take up gainful employment to make ends meet, many women are forced to search for adequate children’s care at the expense of proper nutrition.

    Nigeria’s rate of exclusively breastfed babies stands at 23.7 percent, according to the 2016/2017 multiple Indicator Cluster Survey by the National Bureau of Statistics.  The low EBF rate no doubt contributes to the burden of child malnutrition, with Nigeria having the second highest malnutrition rate in the world with over 1,219 Nigerian children dying daily from malnutrition.

    The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF) recommend exclusive breast-feeding, emphasizing that infants should only receive breast milk without any additional food or drink in the first six months of birth. It recommends breast feeding as often as the baby wants without the use of bottles, teats or pacifiers.

    UNICEF also estimates the cost of low breast-feeding rate at almost $1billion, with other detrimental accompanying factors such as low cognitive development and low IQ.

    Temitope Ojo is a banker working in Lagos State. She has five children aged 10, seven and five (twins) and one respectively.  She recalled that when she had her first child, she practised EBF in the first year but dropped out of the practice when work pressure set in.

    “I had to extract breastmilk into bottles, but my daughter did not drink it and I was forced to introduce baby formula. Since my kids are girls, they didn’t eat much, and I felt the pain in my breast. I guess it’s because of the nature of my job, which kept me away for most of the time,” she said. Adding quickly, however, that her babies have now grown to be healthy charming girls.

    Tolulope Boniface, a teacher with Ifeloju Primary School in the Alimosho area of Lagos, is a mother of two kids.  Though she works as a teacher with a public school, the little flexibility her job affords does not exempt her from the daily challenges of a working mother.

    “I hardly sleep at night. I must lure the baby to sleep every night before I can close my eyes and I still have to wake up early to prepare for work. The financial demands of child care is also daunting.  Though I am grateful for my husband’s support, things are still not easy,” she affirmed.

    Recalling experience with breast-feeding while also holding down a full-time job, she said: “I only had three months to exclusively breastfeed my baby. When I started work, the pain in my breast became unbearable because there was no time feed her in the morning; I would have to leave by 4:30. I’ll still have to go to the crèche to feed her during the day. At a time, she wasn’t feeling well and I couldn’t bear to watch her suffer, so I started givi ng her baby formula. I just had to look for alternative, so she could eat and look healthy”, Boniface stated.

    Nigerians cherish maternity and fertility, so raising a family is a cherished goal for many working people. The International Labour Organisation posits that pregnancy and maternity are an especially vulnerable time for working women and their families.

    The ILO further maintains that expectant and nursing mothers require special protection to prevent harm to their infants’ health. They also need adequate time to give birth, to recover and nurse their children, even as they also require protection to ensure that they will not lose their job simply because of pregnancy or maternity leave.

     

    Additional reporting by Funmi Owoyele

    This story appeared in the print edition with the headline “Our bitter sweet experience: women juggling motherhood with careers”.

  • Group teaches teens business, careers

    As government cannot create enough jobs for today’s young people, non-governmental organisations are now teaching skills, and fostering creativity among students through entrepreneurship training.

    Star Girl Education Foundation (SGEF) is encouraging young girls to focus on their future careers and starting their own businesses.

    How can we foster an entrepreneurial spirit and nurture a next generation of doers and dreamers?

    It is by instilling the skills of entrepreneurship and good life skills in young girls.

    In response to this, a  Lagos –based non-governmental organisation, Star Girl Education Foundation (SGEF) is sowing the seeds of innovation and preparing young girls  to thrive in today’s economy by bringing the business world into the classroom and strengthening the connection between education and economic prosperity. It held a one-day career mentorship programme for high school students.

    The event took place at  Ikosi Junior High School, Lagos. It involved 38 girls. SGEF mentored the girls on how to explore business opportunities and career choices. The programme entitled “Choosing the Right Career” was very well received by the Principal, Vice Principal and Career Counsellor at Ikosi Junior High School.

    One of the coordinators, Funmilola Kehinde, said the purpose of the programme was  to educate, train and empower the next generation of young female  entrepreneurs (TeenPreneurs) so that they become difference-makers who lead productive, fruitful and purposeful enterprises and experience meaningful lives of integrity, serving others and making Nigeria a better place.

    “Our goal is to introduce entrepreneurial skills at an early age and nurture an entrepreneurial drive and values that would set students on the right path for success in achieving their God-given career and life goals.”

    According to her, investments in early girl education will always result in long-term returns that affect individuals’ lives.

    She explained that   youth entrepreneurship needed attention – particularly young girls with the population aging quickly and career choices for young adults are limited.

    During this training, children were taught to believe that success comes from hard work. The trainers encouraged the young girls to talk about their visions for the future and discuss the issues of entrepreneurship. The girls expressed their desires to become doctors, fashion designers, accountants and bankers. Most of them had a limited view of the 21t century careers such as social media managers, ITconsultants and the likes.

    After the end of the programme, the girls were more aware and educated about the new career paths and also promised the team they would work hard and never give up on their dreams. The forum offered the opportunity for the student to network through fun and to develop confidence and leadership skills.  SGEF’s team made up of Funmilola Kehinde, Tomi Bamgbelu, Anu Adelakun, Seun Taylor and Onyechi Chukwujama expressed their satisfaction at the success of the programme. They also encouraged the girls to find their strengths and focus on it very early. They emphasised the importance of having a good relationship with God as it is the bedrock of success in life.

  • ‘Parents should not choose careers’

    Former Special Adviser on Education to the former Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola, Dr. Fatai Olukoga has urged parents to allow their wards to pursue their choice disciplines in schools.

    He said it would lead to better development of the society and maximum output from them.

    Olukoga spoke to reporters at the presentation of his memoir titled, Olukoga: The Quintessential Administrator, at LTV Agindingbi, Lagos.

    He said: ”Parents should encourage their wards to do whatever comes from their minds. They should not be forced to adopt courses or disciplines that are not of interest to them.

    ‘You as a parent must not insist that your child must be a lawyer, when he has another choice in mind or better at something else.”

    Olukoga also made a case for private sector funding of research.

    He urged corporate organisaitons to endow grants for researchers as it is longer feasible for government alone to give grants to researchers.

    Olukoga, however, praised  Lagos State government for its commitment to enhancing research and education in the state.

    He said the last administration committed over N1 billion to sponsoring research – with no fewer than 10 researchers benefitting from the project.

    Olukoga urged the Federal Government to curtail the incessant strikes that have become recurring decimal in higher institutions.

    He said if President Muhammadu Buhari could nip this in the bud, the education sector would reinvent itself again.

    “The seasonal strikes that usually occur in our universities are undermining the education sector. The Federal Government needs to be responsive. There is need to meet up with the yearning of the lecturers and the students.

    “Once that is done and we have good relationship and dialogue, the problems will be resolved. By the same token, there is need for stakeholders to work with passion, patience and perseverance to stabilise education,” he said.

  • Work with school on careers, parents urged

    Work with school on careers, parents urged

    Principal of Wellspring College, Mrs Oluyemisi Oloriade, has urged parents to cooperate with the school in helping their wards choose career paths.

    During the valedictory service for the class of 2015, Mrs Oloriade said the results of some psychological tests by the school on the pupils to discover their potential were at variance with some parents’ desires for their wards.

    She said the tests, however, proved the school’s counseling department right in guiding pupils to study subjects that would lead them to exploit their areas of strength and urged parents to accept the results.

    This, she explained, would help pupils be more productive as professionals as they would settle into fulfilling careers.

    She said: “Mi-Genius Psychological Test was conducted on our students to enable them discover their potentials early in life. This test is very important as it prevents people from going into studies and careers that they would be struggling to succeed in.

    “Some of the results conformed to the advice and directive given by the counseling department of the school. We appeal to our parents to cooperate with the school in directing these children where they will flow easily academically and ultimately have job satisfaction.”

    Oloriade recalled the school’s success in the 2014 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) – where the school recorded 100 per cent in 14 subjects – including Mathematics and the sciences.

    She counseled the graduands to build on the solid foundation the school had laid for them academically and morally.

    “To you, the outgoing students, I am convinced that you have been adequately nurtured and tutored to go out there and compete favourably with the best of your contemporaries. It is now left to you to live out what you have learnt,” she said.

    Chairman of the occasion, Mr Ayoku Liadi, a Divisional Directorate Head with UBA Plc and the preacher, Dr Tony Alabi, also  advised the graduands.

    Liadi, represented by Mr Lekan Balogun, Corporate Head, UBA Lagos Mainland District, counselled the graduands to be guided by their vision for their lives.

    On his part, Pastor Alabi urged the pupils to connect with God’s favour so that they can enjoy men’s favour as well.

    “God’s favour upon your life is what will take you to heights,” he said.

    Highpoint of the programme was prayer session for the graduands by their parents led by the founder of the school, Mr D.C. Isimoya. In appreciation, the graduands presented their parents with gifts.  The programme also featured prize-giving for pupils, who excelled in all areas of school life. There were special songs and dance presentations.

     

  • ACCA prepares Southwest students for careers

    The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, ACCA in Akure, the Ondo State capital, has organised a leadership seminar for university students in the Southwest region of the country.

    The seminar tagged, “Inspiring future leaders in finance” was used to develop the students’ soft skills, knowledge in finance and expose them to opportunities that ACCA qualification can create.

    The event was for Management students of universities in the region to guide them as they navigate a career in finance.

    Among invited universities were Elizade University, Afe Babalola University, Joseph Ayo Babalola University (JABU), Osun State; Redeemers University, Ede; Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado-Ekiti; Oduduwa University, Ipetu-Modu, Osun State, Wesley University of Science and Technology, Ondo, Ondo State and Federal Polytechnic, Ede, Osun State.

    Part of the programme, which featured presentations by ACCA Nigerian team members, was an inter-university debate on the topic:  “The influence of culture on ethical decision making”.

    There was also an employability session facilitated by the Country Head of ACCA in Nigeria, Toyin Adegbola.

    A member of the association, Seyi Olanrewaju, shared his experiences on how joining ACCA helped him.  He advised the students about positioning themselves to be successful in their careers.

    The ACCA Business Development Manager in the northern region, Adeyemi Akinyemi, said the essence of the programme was to prepare the students for the life after school.

    He said: “One of our values at ACCA is opportunity. We are actually looking at an opportunity to give people from different backgrounds the access to information, access to knowledge and access to professionalism.  It cannot be over emphasised how competitive the job world has become today.  Everybody wants to get this job.  For every student we talk to, we expect that when you are going for interview, you are equipped enough to be able to compete to an advantage where whatever skills they are bringing to the table, you have those skills too because you have had an opportunity to have been taught those things.”

     

  • Dani Alves: Germany humiliation won’t stain our careers

    The defender insists the Brazil players’ careers will not be scarred by the embarrassing 7-1 thumping at the hands of Germany in the World Cup semi-final on Tuesday

    Dani Alves does not believe the Brazil players’ careers will be stained by the humiliating 7-1 defeat to Germany in the World Cup semi-final on Tuesday.

    The hosts were crushed by Joachim Low’s side and Alves, who was an unused substitute, insists the Selecao squad is made up of “champions” who will not be remembered for one humbling defeat in Belo Horizonte.

    “No, I don’t believe it is a stain on our careers,” Alves told SporTV.  “It won’t be stained by a single match, or by the elimination. Our fight, and where we reached, nothing can stain this.

    “Football isn’t just about one match. Competitions are made to compete, to try to go as far as you can. We were eliminated today, but in this group, there are only champions.”

    Meanwhile, midfielder Willian was at a loss to explain how Brazil fell to such a humbling defeat after they conceded five first-half goals to the rampant Germans on the way to the worst defeat in the national team’s history.

    Willian said: “Today is an inexplicable day to all of us. It’s one of those inexplicable stories of football. Everything went right for Germany and wrong for us.

    “Our goal was to make it to the final and go for the title. Unfortunately, we couldn’t do it. Every player here has quality, all 11 that Felipao put out there have quality. Nothing went our way, but now we have to raise our heads and life goes on.”

  • Omo challenges pupils on future careers

    Put them to task and they will not disappoint. That is what judges of the Omo Art Competition concluded about the artworks produced by primary school pupils that participated in the Imagine and Achieve Omo Art Competition 2012, organised by Unilever Nigeria.

    They were challenged to prepare collages of their future careers using cardboards and empty Omo packages as materials.

    From bankers, doctors and judges, to accountants and pilots, the pupils employed the collages to describe their future professions.

    Over 200,000 pupils from 5,100 schools in 15 states submitted entries for the first stage of the competition November last year.

    Preliminaries of the competition were concluded in all states in February from which the best schools were selected for the state finals.

    The organisers disbursed N2.7millon as cash awards to the top three winners in each state.

    At the Lagos finals held at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers, Ikeja, where over 100 art works were exhibited, the three winners rewarded were: Master Jeremiah Ochalefu of Ahmed Memorial Nursery/Primary School, Agege, Lagos who won the star prize of N100,000 for coming first, Etim Okon Emma of New Wine Montessori School, Lagos (N50,000 for second place, and Master Justin Okor of Duro Oyedoyin Primary School, Surulere, N30,000 for third place.

    In his remarks, Brand Building Director, Mr David Okeme said the competition was initiated to stimulate creativity among primary school pupils.

     

  • Careers, leadership counselling for pupils

    Pupils schooling in public secondary schools in Agege, Lagos will learn a lot about careers, leadership development and project management this session, courtesy of an initiative by a youth corps member, Olufunbi Falayi, tagged Project 4.

    To this end, Falayi organised a three-day capacity-building training for 20 volunteers, including 10 corps members on career guidance, leadership development and project management between the September 17 and 19 at Agege Local Government Secretariat, in preparation for the launch of the initiative next month.

    Speaking on the project, Falayi said: “Project 4 is an intervention project targeted at public secondary schools in Agege local government, which tends to invest and engage the minds of these students by leveraging on four key components namely: mentoring, leadership development, career guidance/skill acquisition and project management.

    “The aim of the project is to equip them with leadership capabilities, human capacity and entrepreneurship skills, therefore preparing them as change agents, future leaders, potential business owners and reducing the prevalent unemployment rate in the country.”

    The volunteers were trained by seasoned guidance counselors and professionals from Leap Africa, Pro-training centre.

    They will pass on their knowledge to the pupils who have been recruited for Project 4 for a period of six months.