In harmony with the International Women’s Day theme for this year, the Deaf Women Association of Nigeria (DWAN) Lagos chapter and her collaborator, Isonye Foundation have walked the talk by empowering members through digital skills training, seed capital for start-ups, education funds and financial aid.
The empowerment was in two phases. The move was part of series of activities lined up by the DWAN-Isonye partnership to mark this year’s IWD celebration.
Prior to the main celebration on Saturday, May 6, Deaf women and girls were trained on graphics design and telecoms vending.
At end of the training, 10 select women and girls were given data freebies and a seed capital of five thousand naira was transferred to their e-wallets/bank accounts to start monetizing the newly acquired digital skill.
Second phase of the empowerment initiative took place at a Deaf church in Shomolu, Lagos on Sunday, May 14. Select widows each received stipends of five thousand naira, two entrepreneurial startups each got a sum of ten thousand naira and three students from struggling homes received educational support.
In a speech appreciating the privilege of collaborating with DWAN Lagos chapter to drive the gender equality crusade, Dr. Ijeoma Nnodim, founder of Isonye Foundation said: “When we were invited to be part of this project, all of us at Isonye Foundation were elated as it resonates with one of our key ideals – female empowerment”.
One of the beneficiaries
Isonye Foundation is a not-for-profit organization committed to ensuring Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) – especially women and girls have access to preventive, curative and rehabilitative healthcare. It is also aims at fostering an environment where good health/well being are a right for PWDs while promoting gender equality for women with disabilities.
DWAN, on the other hand, is driven by a vision to engender a Deaf friendly society that guarantees full participation and equality of Deaf women and girls in all aspects of life.