By Damiete Braide
In keeping with its mission to provide support for sustainable economic ventures for indigent widows in rural communities, the Hands of God Widows Support Initiative (HOGWIN) has facilitated a skills acquisition programme for selected widows in the Naraguta area of Jos North Local Government Area in Plateau State.
Twenty indigent widows who benefited from the programme were trained in making liquid soap, sanitisers and disinfectants recently.
The training, which was practical and hands-on, took participants through a business clinic where they were taught financial literacy and skills to manage their small businesses.
The training was in line with SDGs 1 and 8, which seek to eliminate poverty and create decent work and economic empowerment.
Phranklin Audu, the executive director of HOGWIN, said that the goal of the organisation is to continue to support more widows to bring them out of the poverty loop so they can fend for themselves and their dependent children.
According to him, the training is one of the ways HOGWIN brings succour to the often-neglected members of society.
“As we often say at HOGWIN, widows matter too and we call on the government and society to pay more attention to their plight. With findings showing that widows may lose up to 75% of support upon the death of their husbands, it behoves us as a community to adequately cater to their needs,” he said.
HOGWIN’s programme coordinator, north-central, Delmwa Gogwin, said with the training, being a first from HOGWIN in northern Nigeria, special attention was given to ensure the women are business-ready. She said the active participation of the widows was a delight to watch.
The coordinator who took the women through the marketing strategy session said after this training the women were already strategizing on how to work in groups and build partnerships to get their products market-ready.
Mrs Tabitha Kankani, a beneficiary of the programme, was almost in tears as she said for a while now, she had been thinking of how to help herself without becoming a burden to anyone and this initiative came at the time she needed it the most. She said now that she has learned these skills and how to package her products for business, she and her children are going to soar.
Hajiya Safiya Salau, another beneficiary, said what stood out for her is the balance between Christians and Muslims in this training. She said they will join hands as sisters and build businesses.
At the end of the training, the widows were excited as they received certificates of participation and commended organisers of the programme.