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Tag: Orelope –Adefulire

SDG projects implementation more focused under Buhari – Orelope-Adefulire

The Conditional Grants Scheme (CGS) was designed by the World Bank and the international community to channel debt relief gains through which states and local governments can access funds annually from the Federal Government towards implementing pro-poor programmes under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In an interview with The Nation’s Assistant Editor, Jide Babalola, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals (SSAP-SDGS), Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, explains how a paradigm shift is being put in place for its disbursement

What has Nigeria achieved under the SDGs within the past three years?

The Nigerian government signed into the Sustainable Development Goals (originally called the Millennium Development Goals) in 2015 and it took off in 2016. Where we are now is the advocacy and sensitization period and to sustain what we have achieved under MDGs and to scale up development. Right now, we are doing very well and we were commended by the United Nations among member states, including developed countries in terms of our effective Action Plan, frameworks, baseline survey and the development plan we set up by ourselves as a country.

What we have done includes a baseline assessment of where we are and plans for what we are going to do in the next five, ten, fifteen years and after the SDGs may have come to an end. So, whether the United Nations is going to extend it or not, we are making progress and now, we are not doing badly. Apart from the expectation of Nigerians and the achievement of government, you can see that within one year of being in recession, we swiftly came out of it through developments in agriculture and non-oil investments. That has helped us, we will continue to sustain and improve on it.

We will continue to ensure that Nigeria can do well without oil. What if the oil dries off tomorrow? So we going to do more of non-oil investments by looking at other opportunities we have and other resources God has blessed us with in this country. We will continue to see how we can use such resources to the maximum towards benefitting our people, create job opportunities, provide skill development for women and ensure that our education standard vastly improves to a level we can all feel proud of while also ensuring that our health sector is given a facelift.

And you can see that the economy is booming now through renewal of infrastructure; railway is coming back and it is going to touch every state of the federation. So, it will help us in moving goods and services and create additional job opportunities. The government of Nigeria is keenly looking to bring in more investor into Nigeria and they are coming in their numbers; the ease of doing business has improved and it will continue to improve for more investors to invest in Nigeria.

The Conditional Grants Scheme being overseen by your office has only benefitted 500 local government areas out of the 774 in Nigeria.

500 local government areas is just a number, the application actually goes to all the local government and all the states. As for those local governments that are not benefitting directly, it is likely that their state has already benefited four to five times and don’t forget that funds are being utilized by the state for the benefit of various local governments. So if you send it to the state, it will reach the local governments, any investment that is done in that state must get to the local government. I don’t see any local government in Nigeria that have no benefited from the CGS; no state is left behind.

Doesn’t the latest training organized by your office in Abuja appear to be somewhat exclusive?

The training is for us to brainstorm as we have been doing in the last four years; we look at other opportunities we can derive from this, what are the issues of the state, what can they identify to be the challenges we will quickly address such. That is the essence of having this meeting. If there is any problem in the state or local government we need to address they will bring it to the table we will all look at it and if there is any other thing we will let them know. As we are liaising with the United Nations, we make arrangements with them so that they can take better development opportunities it to their various constituencies. This very important meeting is to brainstorm, sensitize, rethink and ensure that the partnership between all the tiers of Government is cordial and sustainable.

How is the Conditional Grant Scheme fund being disbursed towards accelerating development in all parts of Nigeria?

The CGS provides 50% counterpart fund for the state and the local governments so they will match it with their own 50% for the development of their respective state and local government. The Conditional Grants Scheme has been an initiative of the Federal Government, which started in 2007, where sub National Governments are encouraged to access funds to scale up development and investment in Millennium Development Goals (2007-2015) and Sustainable Development Goals (2015 – 2030) related projects and programs targeted at the poor and vulnerable. The CGS emerged out of the need to develop new mechanisms to engage and mobilize resources from all the tiers of government towards the achievement of the then Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and now SDGs.

Since its inception in 2005, the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs, now SDGs has, in collaboration with relevant agencies, developed a couple of inclusive and innovative strategies aimed at achieving the then Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Some of these include, the Community Health Insurance Scheme; Conditional Cash Transfers; Federal Teachers Scheme; The Midwifery Service Scheme; Village Health Workers Scheme; and lately, the Special Projects and the Sustainable Development Projects.

However, the Conditional Grants Scheme (CGS) remains the most promising strategy in the use of the Debt Relief Gains (DRG) to achieve the Goals and now the SDGs. The CGS is indeed a veritable platform for inter-governmental collaboration where the Federal, States and Local Governments pool resources in support of national and sub-national development priorities.

Why has the OSSAP-SDGs decided to prioritize health and education?

I said it the other time that educational sector obviously needs to be revamped; we are revamping the education sector and the health sector because education is key to Nigeria’s future development and as for the health sector, everyone easily knows that if you are not healthy, you can’t achieve any meaningful thing. So you must be healthy and strong and education is what will take us all to the next level.

In line with the requirements of the Conditional Grants Scheme Implementation Manual, two sectors – Health and Education – have been identified as the most critical that requires urgent intervention for 2018 CGS to States round. Under the Health Sector, the key interventions should focus on the Construction/ Renovation/Upgrading of Health Facilities; provision of essential equipment/drugs for the health facilities for effective service delivery; strengthening Emergency Referral Systems (ERS) through transportation and communication, especially for emergency obstetric care; provision of water points/boreholes; improvement of waste management and sanitation, while the Education sector interventions should focus on the Construction and comprehensive rehabilitation of Primary School Classrooms; Perimeter fencing and security/Gate-house for schools; provision of portable water points/borehole, toilet facilities for male and female .

Overall, 20% operational cost has been reduced to 10%, which should be utilized for the improvement of Governance and institutional mechanism for Monitoring & Supervision, Research and Development, Community Engagement and participation, as well as communications strategy, including advocacy and branding.

What role should states handle differently towards making the Conditional Grants Scheme more beneficial to the people at the grassroots?

States’ applications (for the funds) will do well by keying into the new initiatives of the Federal government, which will enhance the quality of states’ proposals, such as sustainability solution in this respect, all applications should be accompanied with detailed mechanism for sustainability and community participation. The on-going Monitoring and Supervision of CGS projects by consultants is an essential ingredient in determining subsequent interventions to States. States should therefore make the best use of this opportunity to do proper Data Collection that will assist in putting together subsequent packages to access the CGS Funds.

I am urging all the states’ officials to make good use of resources from the workshop and enhance their capacity to package applications that will scale through evaluation without much hurdle. As time is of the essence, it is necessary to emphasize the need to stick with the stipulated timelines and approved projects for each State, provide necessary documentations as at when due, so that appropriated funds will be accessed and utilized within the shortest time frame.

State governments need to be reminded that the SDGs cannot be achieved through stand-alone projects and programmes. They must be carefully integrated into the state governments’ policies and plan. OSSAP-SDGs will continue to work closely with sub-national governments to adequately mainstream the SDGs into their respective policies and development plans.

January 20, 2019
Orelope-Adefulire: how we’ll drive SDG implementation

The Senior Special Assistant on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to President Muhammadu Buhari, Mrs. Victoria Orelope-Adefulire, has assured Nigerians that the country will meet major aspects of the SDGs.

Mrs. Orelope-Adefulire spoke in Abuja.

She said the country would collaborate with relevant international agencies and make use of best practices while working with the private sector to drive implementation of the SDGs.

She said her office would partner the Ministry of Budget and National Planning to domesticate the 2030 Agenda by integrating it with the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and align it with the National Development Plan.

Nigeria, according to her, is taking the lead in Africa by showing best practice in early domestication, integration and implementation of these goals through sub-national mainstreaming, inter-agency coordination and institutional strengthening.

The special assistant, who was also former deputy governor in Lagos, said one of the major areas of collaboration is bridging the financial gap, which has been a major challenge.

She said: “Our major challenge is inadequate resource flow due to the global economic downturn. We are reviewing the globally acclaimed best practices, such as the Conditional Grants Scheme, to ensure there is right targeting and efficiency in resource allocation to the grassroots.

“By collaborating with the private sector, the SDGs Office will lead Nigeria’s drive to reduce the huge financing gap that tended to hamper progress on the SDGs.”

Orelope-Adelifure said her office would collaborat with different stakeholders in the private sector in science, technology and innovation, data, as well as human resources.

She said Sahara Group, an indigenous oil and gas company led by Tonye Douglas Cole, is sponsoring a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Fund (UN SDG-F) workshop on the development of a Universal Sustainable Development Agenda as a background to the nationalisation of the SDG-F goals for Nigeria.

According to her, the workshop is to get inputs and insights from the UN SDG-F and the private sector on how businesses can effectively contribute their quota towards achieving the SDG’s in Nigeria.

“This is important due to the need for public and private sector agencies and organisations to understand the platforms available for collaboration, to meet the SDG-F goals in Nigeria.With the workshop, we will be opportunity for discussion to facilitate the creation of a collaborative National framework towards the successful implementation of the SDGs,” she said.

According to the Presidential aide the workshop will bring together public and private sector players to discuss the universality of the new SDGs Agenda and its 17 goals. It will also provide guidance on creating the right model for the full implementation of the SDG’s in Nigeria.

She said: “The ultimate aim would be to work closely with the private sector to develop initiatives that would address the peculiarities of nationalizing the SDG’s in Nigeria in line with the Universality Agenda. The workshop would form the basis for developing a framework for further discussions scheduled for the last quarter of the 2016.”

On September 25, 2015, at the 70th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, member states of the United Nations adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Agenda has a set of 17 SDGs and 169 targets, with a framework for a peaceful, just, equitable and inclusive world. The new development Agenda also aligns with Nigeria’s drive to deliver democratic dividends and improve the lives of the poor.

The 2030 Agenda commits all signatory countries to work together to promote sustained and inclusive economic growth, social development and environmental protection; ensure that every person fulfilled his or her potentials in dignity and equality in a healthy environment.

July 12, 2016
Buhari appoints Orelope-Adefulire as SSA on SDGs

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire as his Senior Special Assistant on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Mrs. Orelope-Adefulire, who served as Lagos State Deputy-Governor of in the administration of Babatunde Fashola, according to a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, is an accomplished politician with many years of experience in public service.

She has also served as commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation in Lagos State.

March 8, 2016
I still cook for my husband because I don’t want anybody to steal him for me -Lagos Dep Governor Orelope-Adefulire

Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, who was the former Lagos State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, has been the state Deputy Governor since 2011, although she still oversees the ministry. In this interview with SEGUN AJIBOYE and MIRIAM EKENE-OKORO, she speaks about her role as a wife, her relationship with Governor Babatunde Fashola and other sundry issues. Excerpts:

You have occupied this office for about three years now. How would you describe your experience so far as the deputy governor of a state like Lagos?

Well, I give glory to God Almighty for the opportunity. To me, it is a divine grace, mercy and opportunity. To be the deputy governor of a state like Lagos deserves mercy and opportunity. Showcasing yourself requires you to be very hard working, because Lagos is like governing about five other states put together in terms of responsibilities, population and activities.

Lagos State is different from other states in terms of service delivery. It is more demanding and it has pleased God to give us the opportunity to be here and I know that it was God, it is God and it will continue to be God. The ability to do our work is derived from the grace of God and that is what has been keeping me going, because you know, you can’t just explain how the work goes because it is very tasking and demanding. But if what you do keeps the people happy, then you love to do more and I thank God for being part of this success story as a member of the Lagos State cabinet.

Serving as deputy governor is entirely another responsibility on its own. It is different from my previous job. I have more work to do now, more responsibilities to take and more activities. But God has been very wonderful. He has been my pillar of support and I thank those people that I represent and those that are giving me encouragement by mentoring me, because I believe that you should have leaders that will guide you. I am happy that God blessed me with good leaders, parents and colleagues and good supporters, and of course, the women group that I represent, as well as the children of Lagos, I cherish and love them all.

You have combined your office as the deputy governor with that of the Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA). What are the challenges encountered in carrying out this huge task?

Challenges will definitely come, but the ability to turn them to success is what matters. Even when you are at home without doing anything, challenges will come, but what is important is the ability to translate the challenges into prosperity, that is what matters. A state like Lagos cannot be without any challenge. There are a lot of challenges, but God has been merciful and faithful. Working in the ministry of women affairs for eight years was very tasking, but I see it as part of me and Iam someone who loves solving problems, particularly as they relate to women and children.

It has been part of me, because I think it is my life to help women. Nothing can stop me from this, even when I leave office, I will still continue to work for women and children. I discovered that my mother played a vital role in my life, and that is the secret of my decision to take women empowerment very seriously and passionately. Like I said, my mum played a major role in my life. I have always asked myself this question, ‘what if that woman was not empowered? What would have become of my life?’

Again, it is an opportunity to encourage the younger ones, the girl child and the boy child, because the future would be bright for every child that is well developed. So, if we are not developed when we were young, we will not be here today. Child development, survival and protection are very important. I believe that as a child, even if you missed your way, you can easily retrace it if you have a motivator and counsellor that can take you back to the track. If for example, as a girl child you missed your way or you are pregnant, raped or something happens to you, you can come back if you have somebody that can help you. That is what we are doing in Lagos. Making a mistake is not the end of life. It is very important for each and every one of us to mentor our younger one. They too can aspire and get to where we are today and even do better than we are doing. We cannot be selfish or limit our abilities to ourselves and keep the leadership skills without sharing it.

You are passionate about taking under-age children off the streets. What are the particular challenges facing your government in carrying out this task?

The greatest challenge has been the ever-growing population of Lagos State. You will recall that Lagos is a cosmopolitan state, and the constitution of Nigeria allows for everybody to live wherever you choose to. When you look back at five years ago, we were able to eradicate the menace of area boys from the streets of Lagos and I was one of the members of the team that worked on that arrangement of taking them of the streets. I am very proud to have been involved in that because it has helped to reduce the crime rate seriously. But then what happened again when we now have all those hawkers on the streets?

The number one is that most of the people that come into Lagos came with their problems. Most of these people have not lived in a city like Lagos. But they leave their villages and come to Lagos. You should know that the primary thing they were doing in the village was hawking. So, they come to Lagos and want to do the same thing, knowing that Lagos is a land of opportunities to a lot of people, it is the America of many others. When they come, they disrupt all of our activities and they do not obey law and order because they do not even understand it.

As I am speaking to you now, some are just entering into Lagos, some are leaving their homes now, while others are on their way to Lagos. So, as much as we don’t have the power to stop them, they will keep coming. And again, we have not relented in enforcing the child rights law. There are many factors responsible for all this. Poverty is one; lack of compliance to the law, migration, domestic violence and lack of protection for the child are some others.

Let me talk about domestic violence. When there is a problem in the home between the husband and his wife, the children are the ones that suffer the most. And that is why you see some of them on the roads begging. If a child is not well-protected and loved at home, he or she will most probably run away from home. So, it is important for us as parents to keep our home safe. The women should protect their homes; the husband should love his wife for the sake of the children. And again, some people are responsible for bringing children from other places to Lagos to be used as domestic servants. This is no doubt child trafficking. But they perpetrate this evil act all in the guise that they want to put the children in school or to learn a trade. But once they get here, it is about hawking.

So, we are on them and we have a lot of people working with us. We are on the road every day trying to sensitize with the Yellow Card and rescue these children. But the major problem is that if we succeed and you get rid of them, you would have a new set of people arriving at night and we are back to square one. It is a recurrent issue, but we will continue to do what will know how to do. Our major concern is that children must be protected. You will agree with me that the danger associated with hawking is very huge. These children can be raped, kidnapped or even killed. So, the parents of those children and whoever is responsible for sending them out must know this.

How do you explain that because you want to sell goods worth N1,000, you lose a child? I simply cannot comprehend that. So, they must know the consequences of their action. That is the message that we are preaching to them.

Let’s look at the skill acquisition centres. What has been the impact on the people?

Well, we thank God for the opportunity to impact on lives. That is one of my objectives. It is what I try to do about youth development. If you look at the statistics of people that have been trained in that centre, year in year out, gender by gender to date, you would realise that it is indeed worth the while. We have tried a lot to train thousands of people and they are in four categories. A large number of them are in tertiary institutions for those who can further their education. Another category have established their own small scale businesses, while the third category are into paid employment.

There are about three percent of them that are not using their trade and we have to analyse this, some are housewives and their husbands would not let them work, so they cannot do any major work. Some said their religion forbids them from getting loans and we cannot give them free money. But despite that, we have established a loan scheme. Some of them that we spoke to during the post-training evaluation are doing home services now, and we assist them to get complimentary cards to do their home services. We are happy that the majority of those who established their own businesses got the money from jobs they did for us by producing carnival costumes, neighborhood watch uniforms, school voluntary clubs and school uniforms amongst others. The centre is doing well and we will be graduating some people soon.

The governor recently launched an empowerment programme. How is this different from the training being offered at the centre?

There are two schemes in the poverty reduction strategy that we are doing. The economic empowerment programme is a routine programme of government, while WAPA started in 2006. The skill acquisition centre is for large scale training of the youths because we want them to have large scale knowledge of what they are being taught. The minimum time you can spend at the centre is six months, while the maximum is 15 months. The economic empowerment is a short term training of four to six weeks. With that, we believe that the youth have to get the technical knowledge of what they are being taught. If you are a welder, you cannot get the technical knowledge in six weeks, so also carpentry. But housewives, retirees, widows and single mothers and those that have lost their jobs can learn something in six weeks. I was amazed when I saw what they are doing. I was thinking a six-week trainee should be able to sew the usual iro and buba caftan and stuff. We introduced it, and it is working well. I was at the Surulere centre recently, you would be amazed if you see what they were doing with their hands. With determination, there is nothing difficult to do. So, it is a routine programme that we have been doing since 2006, we only scaled it up.

The tragedy during the recent recruitment exercise of the immigration department is enough proof that there are lots of unemployed youths. So, we decided to scale up the programme. If you wait for a paid employment and it is not coming, you can start up something on your own if you acquire the skill. You can do bead stringing, tie and dye, catering or soap. For example, those people that we trained in the last programme are the ones that are now producing soap for schools in Lagos State since the outbreak of the Ebola virus. It is the same for those who make costumes. They are engaged during carnivals and other festivals. So, what we are saying is that laziness and idleness have no place in Lagos. If you can use your hands, you will get empowered in Lagos. We allow everybody to get equal opportunity, even if you are a graduate, you are allowed to come and learn there.

Some people I know go around social events with people who tie gele for them. But I had to learn it, and since then I have been doing it myself. For more than five years now, I do my make-up myself and I don’t have to engage anybody to do it for me. People are happy about the skill acquisition training centre and they are full of praises for the government of Lagos State. It will surprise you to know that from our earlier planned figure of 5,000, we now have 12,000 trainees in the first phase, while 15, 000 people are coming for the second phase. This shows that people are happy with what we are doing to take them out of poverty so that they can support their husbands and children.

Since the advent of democratic rule, we have had cases of deputy governors clashing with their governors. But you have had a very good relationship with Governor Fashola. What is the secret?

I said before now that my parents brought me up very well to know what is good from what is not good, to respect elders and to be loyal and honest. Since I started my political career, those things that my parents told me have continued to ring in my ear. I was taught that I must respect my elders and leaders, and have the consciousness of not doing what I don’t want others to do to me. If I don’t want anybody to harm me, I shouldn’t harm another person. And if I don’t want anybody to insult me, I won’t insult another person too. Working together with anybody is a matter of understanding.

One thing, which I learnt and has helped me to understand who Iam working with is that I understand my master and know what he likes and what he does not like. If I know what he does not like, I will not go near it, because going that way will lead to problem. I don’t want to live in a problematic environment. I like peace and love to work in a peaceful environment, and this has helped me this far. Of course, prayers and the grace of God, who in His mercy has been my guiding light. Besides, Governor Fashola has been a good leader, a friend and God has endowed him with wonderful leadership skills.

What was growing up like?

I grew up to know my father as a politician. As a child, I helped them to arrange meetings, write minutes whenever the secretary was not around. And in 1999, when Gen. Babangida banned the old breed politicians, I decided to come into politics. But my father warned me when he got to know about my decision. But eventually, after much pleading, he said I should not contest because he felt that as the child of the leader, I should not come out to contest. But after that, he called me and advised that where I was going is very important. He said you either make or mar your name. He also emphasised on honesty, hard work, dedication and positive impact, such that when you leave office you have something that will outlive you.

So, I said to myself, that Orelope was given to my father because of his kind-heartedness and I want to be part of that beautiful story. That has been my objective, that this name, which I borrowed should not be destroyed. This echoes in my mind every time and I try to guide the name jealously. I don’t want to bring shame to my parents nor disappoint my leaders. I have a lot of people that are looking up to me and I must not disappoint them too. If you do it well, it is an opportunity for those coming behind and if not, you are sending another signal to everybody.

How fashionable are you?

In the course of my being a public officer, I have had to learn how to tie gele. I didn’t like to do this initially, but when it became obvious to me that I have to be tie gele, I said to myself, ‘I have set up the skill acquisition centre where people are trained. I can as well be trained to do these things. As I speak with you now, I now know how to do make-up, soap and tie and dye.

So, what informs what you wear?

Lagos is known for Aso ebi. So, when it is time for Aso ebi, I go with them. But I dress moderately. I don’t have any special style to be identified with.

With your busy schedules, how often do you cook?

I cook for my husband. That is the truth. I am the wife of my husband. The title of deputy governor is an office. I love my home and my home comes first. If I don’t have peace at home, I will not be able to work here and I don’t want anybody to steal my husband. I respect my husband and he respects me. And if you cannot manage your home as a woman, you will not be able to manage a public office.

Men exert a lot of authorities which they got from God. And as such, they don’t need to ask permission from their wives before joining politics. But a wife must get the consent of her husband before she enters into politics. My husband consented to me joining politics, and if I have a headache in politics, I go back to him to solve it. If I don’t have his support, then it will be difficult and whatever will make him happy for me to be here, I will do.

October 4, 2014
‘Women deserve more’…Orelope-Adefulire, Ajimobi’s wife seek new gender order

Three prominent women in the Southwest are leading the advocacy for a new deal for women. They are Lagos State Deputy Governor Mrs Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire; the wife of Oyo State governor, Mrs Florence Ajimobi, and Osun State Deputy Governor Otunba Titi Laoye-Tomori.

Mrs Orelope-Adefulire pushed for the inclusion of more women in politics and also called on every government tier to increase investment in women.

The deputy governor said investment in women not only makes more economic sense, but has more impact as it accelerates the nation’s march to economic transformation.

She spoke at the just concluded second National Women’s Summit organised by the Oyo State Officials’ Wives Association (OYSOWA), which held at Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

She said that having more women in politics “is not only important, but also a strategic way of empowering women because it has broader benefits and impact.”

She said Nigeria has no excuse to lag behind in giving more political exposure to the women, adding that the world has realised that paying attention to gender balancing and equality is a sure way to promote change and development as well as helping to attain cohesion and stability in the society.

She declared: “Nigerian women have the intellect and the potential to make the nation great. They have demonstrated this through the vital contributions they have made at some point in our history as pioneers of change and development.”

The deputy governor who bemoaned the poor status of women, said the empowerment of more women through participation in decision-making at high levels in the country would fast-track the nation’s aspiration to join the world’s top economies.

Mrs. Orelope-Adefulire, a former Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA), was the keynote speaker at the summit whose theme was “Women as Agent of Change.”

She argued further that participatory governance with more women would enhance the attainment of gender equality and pro-poor strategy, maintaining that as such, “Nigeria can edge higher among other developing nations with meaningful investment in women, as such investment as smart economics. Indeed, investment in girls is even smarter economics.”

Orelope got the nod of the wife of Oyo State Governor, Mrs Florence Ajimobi and Deputy Governor of Osun State, Mrs. Grace Tomori.

There were other high-profile women and government officials at the forum.

On her part, the chief host Mrs. Ajimobi, urged participants at the forum to support women in positions of authority in order to enable them succeed and effectively exhibit the leadership potential and capabilities of the female gender.

She said: “Many of our men folk, despite the global strides of women in the political arena, have refused to bury the misconceived perception of the second fiddle place of women in the scheme of things. They still see women from the prism of a disposable commodity or an item that is good only in the kitchen.

“Today, there are still societies which see a woman as subservient to a man, in mental and biological capacity. This is why, in spite of glaring monumental achievements of women across the globe and the phenomenal rise of the role that women play in the world, many are still gender insensitive and perceive women as being mentally inferior and their roles largely unappreciated.”

Speaker after speaker commended Mrs. Ajimobi and members of OYSOWA for seeking to effect a positive change in the physical, emotional, social and economic well-being of families and communities in the state, through giving more support and empowerment to women.

“It is my firm belief that an equal participation of our men and women in the development of our nation will certainly help in bring about the desired change in our society, strengthen our economy, and make Nigeria a country to be proud of,” said Mrs. Rose Oyedele, one of the resource persons at the forum.

October 2, 2013
Orelope –Adefulire: Serving with compassion

SHE may not necessarily be in the shoes of legendary Funmilayo Ransome –Kuti, Queen Amina or Margaret Ekpo- women of substance who have during their time paid their dues and made their mark in the history of the nation .They are women who have etched their name in history and taking position alongside men of valour and fame of their time. It is on record they fought for women’s rights and emancipation of the citizenry at the different stages of the nation’s history.

You may also not call her a freedom fighter in spite of her numerous campaign for women’s education, child development, home rehabilitation and the correction of social vices like child abuse, street trading and hawking which have continued to destroy our value systems. This serious social issues which have cropped up in the nations march to modernity have invariably made women to be more at the receiving end of the societal ills and often the underdog to be used and discarded.

But suffice it to say that Princess Victoria Adejoke Orelope- Adefulire, the deputy governor of Lagos state who clocks 53 today, has in her own humble way re-written women’s role in contemporary history and change the perceived role of women often used as, ushers, backbenchers and professional praise singers at political events and in some cases seen as tool to satisfy men of easy virtues. In the last two decades of her active participation in politics, she has in no small way contributed to bringing the women folk up in the nations journey to nationhood.

According to the amiable mother and grassroots politician, ‘I have used the opportunity given me to serve in a responsible way because opportunity often comes with responsibility’. That she had indeed served remarkably well in various positions and has been noted is an understatement.

Princess Orelope –Adefulire, has in the past two decades served in various capacities she has found herself either as electoral commissioner, member of the Lagos state house of assembly, commissioner of women affairs and poverty alleviation in the state for eight years (first to hold such a position in the state for the length of time) and now as the deputy to Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) the governor of the centre of excellence.

She has indeed imparted more than any of her ilk in contemporary women leadership. What is more, Adejoke has made use of what she herself described as opportunity which has come her way in the past years of her sojourn in service and politics. ’ I have used the opportunity which came my way to serve with responsibility’. This, she has done in her various callings which no doubt made her to be noticed and fetch her the enviable position many of her ilk struggle in vain to get but which never came .

In the fight against child abuse, the Amazon fought hard and got the Lagos state government to enact a law in the form of the Child Rights Act which will go a long way in enforcing the rights of the child and protect the girl child from the constant molestation and deprivation both from parents, teachers and the citizenry. On this score, the state has taken a lead among 36 other states in the enactment and enforcement of the child rights law.

To drive home the seriousness of the government to fight child abuse she declared, ‘I want to sound a warning to everybody including religious leaders that the rate of domestic violence and abuse of our children is now alarming and the government would not close its eyes and allow the future of our children to be destroyed’. Dedicated phone lines for children and wives who are subjects of various stages of abuse have been made public to drive home the seriousness of the government and give the citizenry the opportunity to defend their right.

To complement the fight against child abuse, she recently launched the programme of provision of suggestion boxes in public schools in secondary schools in the state. This measure according to her is to give a voice to the oppressed students in an era of increasing child abuse and deprivation in the country.

Today, it is to her credit that 17 vocational centres are in active operation in all parts of the state providing short and long-term vocation, skill acquisition and technical education to housewives, students and the unemployed graduates in the state in her effort to reduce unemployment and poverty which she said has been the bane of development and cause of the various societal ills. At the last count, more than 200,000 beneficiaries have graduated from these centres, with the training at no cost to the students.

As part of her efforts to eradicate poverty and turn hitherto idle housewives in Lagos into reliable partners for their husbands and helping hands at home, the ministry for women affairs and poverty alleviation under her direct supervision last July organised a six weeks short- term training programme in eight centres in the states to train them in vocation like soap and detergent making, fashion design and decoration, tie and dye, bead making, hairdressing, rat poison production, stove wicks making, catering and hat making.

The essence of the training, Princess Adefulire said, is to make the housewives and interested young school leavers gainfully employed through the short term vocation they have received adding, ‘gone are days when we had women as full housewives. We believe that because of the economic recession, with insufficient job opportunity is in the country, our women should be given opportunity to learn one trade or another so as to be able to contribute to the development of the home, assist their husbands and support their children’.

While encouraging the women to take the programme seriously, she challenged them further saying, ’their is no limit to what you can do with your hands. we have 17 centres that are running for the youths, young school leavers, drop-outs and graduates and we have close to 10,000 students there’.

To borrow a leaf from her initiatives in Lagos, at least two state governments in the south west parts of the country namely Osun and Ekiti have paid inspection tours and visits to the state to study its various poverty alleviation programmes initiated by Princess Orelope with the aim of adopting same in their various states.

A woman of compassion and utmost dedication to the cause of the family, Adefulire enjoined traders especially women who are in the habit of sending children to hawk in the streets to discontinue such acts adding that this will in no small ways reduce the incidence of accidents on the highway most of which victims are women . This, she said should be avoided by complying with the recent traffic law which she believes would go a long way to help the women folk and prevent avoidable deaths.

‘Women must ensure that business activities and other forms of trading should be done in designated places. We don’t want to continue to see useful lives wasting on the highway as a result of street trading’ she empathised.

Indeed the minister for women affairs, Hajia Zainab Maina, who came with her team of about twenty federal civil servants to Lagos state last July, was surprised at the level of efforts being made to reduce poverty and empower women in the state such that she recommended the programme for adoption in many states of the country.

Her visit to Lagos was preceded by the teams from Osun and Ekiti states who also toured the various facilities and vocational centres at Mushin, Ikorodu, Ojodu and see for themselves the various training and vocational centres which had turned many idle housewives and women into employers of labour.

In her comment after the visit to several of the vocation training centres, the commissioner of women affairs and social development in Osun state, Mrs Mofoluke Adegboyega declared, Lagos state is doing a lot of work not just because of the population. In Osun state we do things like this but not as good as what we have seen in Lagos. This is a lot of work and I know it will take time to get to this stage. Our intention is to go back and replicate what we have seen in senatorial and constituency districts of our state’.

But since the increased participation of women in politics has the level of participation in conformity with the 25 ratio anticipated?

For her, the present level is commendable and a signal that one day women will attain the target adding ‘if today we have seven women as members of the Lagos state house of assembly and seven as members of the state executive council, I think we are not faring badly. We have done well and I am sure we will get there one day.’’

But in spite of this modest accomplishment, she still believes that the environment is not conducive enough for women to win elections in the country given the tensions and violence that accompanies elections hence canvassed that women should be giving incentive like collecting free forms for elections from political parties.

This incentive, she argued would go a long way to encourage women to come out and participate in politics adding that such encouragement would compensate women folk as a result of fears of the violence prone environment, and the volatile nature of politics. In her own opinion, such incentives would give integrity to the game of politics and create the much needed level playing field for the womenfolk whose roles and participation she argued further, ‘’are necessary if we must liberate our country and move forward as a nation’.

But then of what significance is the anniversary or the nation’s independence? To her, the 52 years of the nationhood should be spent to consolidate on the modest achievements and a charge for all to take the Nigerian project more seriously.

‘’We have to take the Nigerian project as a serious project.’ This attitude, she said, is needed as the country is confronted with serious infrastructural deficits, high rate of corruption, credible election and sound education system without which the vision20-20-20 would be a mirage.

But having spent close to two decades in politics and still going what legacy would she like to be remembered for?

Service to humanity, hard work and mentoring lot of people has been her focus and would probably remains so as she continues her journey in the murky waters of politics threading where other women and indeed men fear to venture and raising hopes for a better future for the indigent youths, rural dwellers and putting smiles on the face of grassroots women, which had been her constituency this past years.

‘’Focus, hard work, efficiency and the urge to do better has been my driving force and I give all the glory to God for this’ she declared.

For Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, glory indeed has been her portion for somebody who has opportunity thrown on her laps in this past two decades of her participation in politics crowned with the position of deputy governor.

By Tunde Abatan, S.A (media) to her Excellency, the deputy governor of Lagos state.

September 30, 2012