International Day: Kwara lawmakers pledge to empower girl-child

The Kwara State House of Assembly has assured of its commitment to empowering the girl-child in the state.

The Assembly made the pledge on Friday in a statement by its Speaker, Yakubu Danladi-Salihu, to mark the United Nations International Day of the Girl Child.

“We pledge our renewed commitment to continue to empower the girl child so that they can continue to break barriers, scale hurdles and shatter glass ceilings to make us proud by contributing to the development of our state,” Mr Danladi-Salihu said in the statement.

He said the Assembly marked the day as “It is a special day set aside to celebrate the strength, resilience, and potential of the girl child worldwide.”

Lawmakers pay homage to governor’s mum

The lawmakers also paid homage to Raliatu AbdulRazaq, the nonagenarian mother of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.

Mrs AbdulRazaq, who is the founder of the Raliat Foundation, an entity involved in philanthropy in Kwara, was described by the lawmakers as a reference point for the girl child.

“We also wish to mark this symbolic day by formally acknowledging and honoring the pioneering role of girl-child education in Kwara by Hajia Raliatu AbdulRazaq, a nonagenarian and the first female councillor in Kwara, whose life remains a reference point for every girl child.” they stated.

“It is not surprising that her son, Mallam AbdulRazaq has been inspired by this heroine of the Girl Child through his policies and programmes that are tailored towards the empowerment of womenfolk, especially the Political Offices (Gender Composition) Bill of 2021.

“Today, Kwara State currently has the highest (number of) female cabinet members in the country and just recently, 15 of the 16 Kwara Local Government Councils elected Vice Chairmen are all women,” the Speaker said.

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