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Category: Gender

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Empowering Women Through Peer Education Training

Through years of working on projects at the community level, we realize that women and girls are hugely disadvantaged. They have often been marginalized and segregated to the background on so many fronts in society. One of the primary reasons for marginalization is the inequality between men and women in accessing and controlling resources.

Understanding this, South Saharan Social Development Organization, in partnership with ActionAid Nigeria, organized a women’s peer education training in Igga community, Uzo Uwani LGA. The program seeks to foster women’s empowerment through peer education. This initiative aims to advocate for women’s rights and bridge women’s capacity deficiency at the community level.

The three-day training was facilitated by the project lead, Priye West, and SSDO’s Gender Officer, Blessing Uchendu. The training was executed using the Women Peer Education Resource Kit.

During the training sessions, the women expressed how low self-esteem had previously affected their engagement in community activities. They also discussed issues that impacted their emotional well-being within their marriages, such as husbands using harsh words and taking their earnings. They were taught by the team how to identify opportunities provided by the government and how to position themselves to be beneficiaries. 

Education and skill acquisition were discussed, with many young girls expressing concerns about their parents’ reluctance to send them to school, leading to early marriages within the community. This issue was recognized as critical and in need of addressing during advocacy meetings.

The concept of managing post-harvest losses was explained, although many participants lacked the necessary capital to expand their businesses. Climate change issues were addressed, focusing on harmful environmental practices that needed to be rectified. The participants were encouraged to promote inclusivity and support disabled individuals in the community, despite their community having few disabled persons.

The training also covered essential areas such as personal development, health, livelihood and survival, and inclusion. The women were taught the importance of body image, self-esteem, time management, hygiene, skill acquisition, and the dangers of gender-based violence. After the training, the group elected a President.

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Sister Guardian Initiative provides Technical Assistance to Orokoro Community

One of the reasons why the rate of gender-based violence is higher in communities is that most rural communities in Nigeria do not have structures to support women facing domestic violence. The little support that exists – pro bono legal services and safe houses can only be accessed in the state capitals.

Understanding these concerns and needs, South Saharan Social Development Organization, SSDO, is implementing the Sister Guardian Initiative to reduce violence at the community level. The program is currently being implemented in 19 Enugu and Anambra state communities. The initiative provides psychosocial support to women and makes referrals to other relevant agencies where necessary.

In March, the Gender Officer and Jacob’s Well Project Officer visited Orokoro community in Isi Uzo LGA to provide technical assistance and supervision. These visits would help monitor the initiative’s progress, build the capacity of the Sister Guardians, and conduct a need assessment evaluation to strengthen the initiative in the target communities.

The women were also sensitized on effective loan repayment strategies and how to scale their businesses. They were educated on how to identify new opportunities for expansion and how to position their businesses to leverage opportunities. The visit was also an avenue for the Gender Officer to mediate and counsel a couple. Helping to broker peace in the family.

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SSDO, WaterAid Nigeria Commemorates International Women’s Day 2023

International Women’s Day is a global day to celebrate women’s socioeconomic, cultural, and political achievements. It is also a unique opportunity for women to rally and advocate for equal treatment and representation.

South Saharan Social Development Organization, SSDO, in partnership with WaterAid Nigeria, commemorated International Women’s Day through a radio sensitization and advocacy engagement. The topic of discussion was women’s role in managing Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) Facilities at the community level.

The guests on the show were – Society for Water and Sanitation (NEWSAN) Enugu Coordinator, Ms. Enwelum Ogechukwu, Sanitation Officer, Small Towns Unit – Ministry of Water Resources, Iyiodo Juliet, SSDO’s Head of Programs, Udochukwu Egwim, and SSDO’s WASH Officer, Obianuju Ezeike.

They all critically analyzed and discussed the topic extensively, highlighting the impact of poor access to WASH facilities on women. As well as how the lack of water in rural communities affects the girl child.

This radio sensitization served as an avenue to enlighten the public on the need for the government to build the capacity of more women in the construction and technical aspect of the water sector. And also to include more women in the management of water facilities, as this has been shown to yield better results.

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Women’s Peer Education Training

Through years of working on projects at the community level, we realize that women and girls are hugely disadvantaged. They have often been marginalized and segregated to the background on so many fronts in society.

One of the primary reasons for marginalization is the inequality between men and women in accessing and controlling resources.

And as such South Saharan Social Development Organization, in partnership with ActionAid Nigeria, seeks to foster women’s empowerment through peer education. This initiative aims to advocate for women’s rights and bridge women’s capacity deficiency at the community level.

The program was facilitated by the Project’s Lead, Perpetual Njoku, SSDO’s Gender Officer, Blessing Uchendu, and SSDO’s Good Governance Lead, Nkem Awachie. The training was executed using the Women Peer Education Resource Kit. 

It covered essential areas such as personal development, hygiene, livelihood, nutrition, and inclusion. The women were taught how to mobilize and organize for collective actions, rights and responsibilities, family and community relationships, and well-being.

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Jacob’s Well Micro-credit Scheme Empowers 29 People

Studies from the Nigerian Economic Summit Group revealed that 91 million Nigerians live below the poverty line. With an additional, eight million people pushed into poverty in 2021. Interestingly, about 60 percent of people living below the poverty line are women. Unemployment, unpaid labor, gender discrimination, and marginalization are mostly responsible for it. 

In many communities, women are largely dependent on their spouses for their financial needs. This dependence is one reason why women fail to report gender-based violence. They fear they’d lose their financial support and become stranded. 

This dependency also means that these women are largely unbanked and would be next to impossible to access loans from traditional institutions. Their lack of access to assets of their own also means they don’t have any form of capital that can suffice as collateral. In our line of work, we’ve seen that this economic disparity engenders gender-based violence. 

Understanding these peculiar challenges, South Saharan Social Development Organization empowers them to be financially independent, thus reducing poverty and dependency. 

One such way we do this is through Jacob’s Well micro-credit scheme. SSDO makes loans available to women in a cooperative at low-interest rates to start or sustain their businesses. The organization empowers these women with no collateral required leveraging the social trust within the cooperative mechanism to ensure compliance across the board. 

In November, 29 loan collectors across three registered cooperatives got loans to grow their businesses. They were trained in financial literacy, risk management, savings culture, business and cooperative management to help sustain and grow the venture.

A sum of 2.85 million naira was disbursed to these women with no collateral required leveraging the social trust within the cooperative mechanism to ensure compliance across the board.