THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN MBAISE USA

THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN MBAISE USA

BY

CHIEF MRS EBERE AKUECHIAMA

DIRECTOR OF WOMEN/CHILDREN AFFAIRS.


Mr. chairman, our distinguished patrons, ndi nze n’ ozo, ndi nwem na ndi dim, distinguished ladies and gentlemen good afternoon. I feel very honored to stand before you this afternoon to present “THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN MBAISE USA”. I must not fail to thank and commend the president and borad of delegates for recognizing the women of MBAISE USA and for giving ME the platform to speak in an MBAISE USA convention. I must stress that this is the first time women are recognized and given a spot in our convention and we don’t take it for granted. Thank you Mr. President.

When we talk about the role of women in MBAISE USA, we may extrapolate that to the role of MBAISE Diaspora women in the development and sustainable growth of MBAISE and indeed Imo State and/or Nigeria generally. Let me start with taking you down memory lane. When God created Adam, he was all alone. He had everything, yet he wasn’t complete until God created Eve. The dynamics of the Garden of Eden changed immediately Eve came into the equation. That is to say, MBAISE USA or any organization without the active involvement of women will be short sighted and will not reach its full potentials. Women have a unique style and vision that God in His infinite wisdom imbued us with. It is all about complementing one another and not competition.


Women hold the unit of the society together and that unit being the family is the fulcrum of the society. Therefore, the role of women in MBAISE USA is first and foremost to ensure family cohesion and bringing up our children within the context of our culture as ndi Igbo. We believe that women are agents of social transformation and thus the Women of MBAISE USA aim to promote love, peace, unity, cooperation, understanding, justice and fair play between and among all women and men from MBAISE resident in the U.S.A. and at home.

In keeping with the objective of MBAISE USA, we (MBAISE WOMEN) are willing partners to bringing sustainable development to ALA MBAISE. To that effect, we will collaborate with our women back home in building a network whereby our resources are harnessed, as well as provide a forum for cultural exchanges, cultural activities and education of our youths about their rich cultural heritage.

There is no reliable data on the population of MBAISE and thus we do not have a disaggregated data about the population of women vis a vis men and children. However, according to Imo State Government web site, “Imo State has a population of about 4.8 million persons. The population density varies from 230 persons per sq. km. in Oguta/Egbema area, to about 1,400 persons per sq. km. in Mbaise, Orlu, Mbano and Mbaitoli areas. This high population density has led to intensified pressure on land, forests and other natural resources, leading to increasing rural poverty which is characteristic of densely populated rural areas…” (http://www.imostate.gov.ng/info/AboutImo). Since MBAISE is the most populated area in Imo State, it will be safe to assume that MBAISE has the largest number in terms of population and invariably the highest rural poverty rate in Imo State. Those most hit with acute poverty and helplessness are the widows with young children and the less educated young mothers below 35 years of age who lost their spouses through various accidental means, yet they each have two to seven children to support. They are jobless; lack the skills, education or motivation to move forward. All they have is “hope” and “prayer” that it will be okay one day. We all know the family system and the extent of capitalism in Nigeria, particularly in Igbo land, where everyone is responsible for him or herself financially. Other issues that these women face are lack of education, poor healthcare, lack of social infrastructure, cultural taboos, lack of land inheritance etc.

We the Women of MBAISE USA want to ensure that the under privileged women in our region have the training, skills and finances they need in order to make them successful in society. To solve some of the problems faced by the less privileged women in our region, the Women of MBAISE USA plan to embark on a poverty alleviation program through the establishment of initiatives like Women Co-operative and micro credit Loans. The purpose is to empower women in our communities, enabling them to build their capacity instead of toiling everyday with crude farm tools, fetching water from distant sources, etc (that is the feminization of rural poverty). Through co-operative activities and an average loan of $200 or more, they will be able to mobilize their scattered resources, become competitive and more productive while engaging in economy of scale. Stemming from this empowering co-operative, they will be able to feed themselves and their families as well as become more independent.

Also, we are interested in the welfare of the indigent children especially the orphans in MBAISE. We believe that it takes a village to raise a child and we are willing to lend helping hands as well as invest in the lives of at-risk children and orphans in our community. As time progresses, we will be making cash and in-kind donations to the motherless babies’ homes in MBAISE as well as draw up other programs which will impact these young ones positively. Just to reiterate, social researchers warned us that failing the very young, “…creates a huge risk for these children as they grow up, both for themselves and for the society in which they live”. Hence, children growing up with low self-esteem and little sense of security, poorly educated, with poor social skills and minimal life chances to pull themselves out of poverty have little chance to become productive, self-sufficient citizens and parents. They will be likely to increase instability, crime and other problems in the society at large; perpetuating the human rights abuses they have suffered. As a result, we can expect to see rising crime and homelessness, growing numbers of street children, increasing rate of prostitution, and worsening exploitation of girls and women, with a further generation of ill-cared-for children born to these impoverished parents. Equally, it is vital to note that we will never overcome poverty, petty crime and some health problems until we pay full attention to, and participate in, solving minor problems around us.

While we recognize that we cannot solve all the problems in our society. Our objective is to reach out to impoverished women and indigent children in our community. We want to make a difference in their lives so that they are not forced to embrace crime. Yahoo! Mail

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The impact of these activities is that both individual and community capacity will be built. Please note that in the nearest future, we shall be calling upon you for financial and moral support to facilitate these programs. Please, broaden your generosity and compassion and help us do more for these forgotten widows, babies, little boys and girls.

The implementation proposal. I request for the formation of women/children committee, made up of two women representatives from each chapter. Each member of our women committee will be responsible for one clan, preferably start with “ndi wunyediya” with initial seed of $1000.00 for 5 women or $2000.00 for 10 women. She will teach the ladies basic book keeping, profit and loss and market research 101. We plan to start with 10 villages two from each of the five clans of MBAISE for our pilot project.

We intend to start with 50 women struggling women who want to help themselves but have no start-up funding, we will utilize the services/help of the local women meeting at the village level or church to identify these women and hopefully rely on their leaders and peer pressure for repayment of the loan, to keep it rotating. Our budget is $10,000.00. Members will volunteer their services and pay their airfare to Nigeria which can be written off as a charity to donation to MBAISE USA for tax purposes. So far we have $5000.00 from Chief and Chief Mrs Akuechiama and $1000.00 from Atty EJIKE ANAKANI. Totaling $6000.00. What I need from the organization is $4000.00.

SOURCE OF FUNDING FOR THIS NOBLE PROJECT.

1.MBAISE WOMEN will sell kola nuts at this convention to raise money. So please buy kola nuts from us.

2.MBAISE WOMEN will be raising fund through passing out envelopes, PLEASE BE VERY GENEROUS TO US.

3.MBAISE WOMEN are soliciting for monetary donations during the gala night, please mention our project during your donation to MBAISE USA.

4.MBAISE WOMEN will seek to collaborate with federal Minister for women affairs and the state commissioner for women affairs in Nigeria. We will need the help of our Nigerian patrons to make these contacts.

5.MBAISE WOMEN will seek out charity organizations here in the USA who gives assistance to rural women in developing countries.

We believe that women can make a difference in MBAISE-USA, and with your support nothing can stop us unless we stop ourselves. Thank you very much for your time. May God bless you all!! Long live MBAISE-USA!! Long live ndi Mbaise nile!!!


Chief Mrs Ebere Akuechiama

Director of Women and Children affairs

MBAISE USA.