NGO to strengthen women’s roles in COVID-19 response in Kaduna
A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), The Connected Development (CODE), says it will expand platforms provided by the Kaduna State Government for women to participate in decision-making process of COVID-19 response.
CODE’s Senior Programme Manager, Mrs Lucy Abagi said this when officials of the NGO visited the Commissioner for Planning and Budget Commission, Mr Thomas Gyang in his office in Kaduna on Thursday.
Abagi said that the NGO had secured support from the UN Women under its Strengthening State Capacities and Women’s Participation in COVID-19 Response project to promote women participation in decision-making.
She said that through the project, CODE would analyse the plans, policies, budget, and actions taken by the state government in responding to COVID-19 to see the roles played by women.
According to her, the analysis will enable CODE to document the roles played by women in the state’s response to COVID-19 and amplify it for other states to emulate.
She pointed out that the deputy governor, the six female commissioners and other women heading key parastatal agencies were part of the task force that were still responding to COVID-19 issues in the state.
According to her, the goal is to document lessons leant in the involvement of women in the decision-making process during the lockdown, how the decisions and actions impacted on women and amplified them.
“We want to amplify the need for other states in the country to emulate Kaduna state and ensure that women are given a space in the frontline of COVID-19 response.
“The project seeks to build the capacity of women in the state to participate in COVID-19 response and broaden their participation in the decision-making process.
“We want to see the platforms Kaduna state provided for women and amplified the need for other states in the country to emulate and ensure that women were given a space in the frontline of COVID-19 response.”
The senior programme manager said that the move would ensure more women participation in the country’s leadership and governance structure.
She said that they were in the office to seek the support of the commission in documenting the roles played by women in the frontline of the commission’s COVID-19 response.
Responding, Gyang said that women officials in the commission had played key roles in the state’s response to COVID-19, particularly the ones in the budget department.
He also said that there were several women serving as directors, deputy directors or head of units in the commission and were doing impressively well.
“I want to confirm to you that some of the best staff I have in the commission are women. I have learnt over time to give a woman certain task that I want done with immediate effect,” he said.
