The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved an empowerment policy for women in the country.
Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, who disclosed this to State House correspondents, on Wednesday in Abuja, expressed the hope that the new policy, called WEE, would help bring about optimal development in the country.
She said, “Yesterday, the Federal Executive Council approved the WEE Policy. The WEE Policy is Women’s Economic Empowerment. It is a policy dialogue that we’ve been working on for over one year.
“We’ve traversed all around the country to the 36 states, having dialogues with the private sector, rural dwellers, to find the best way to empower women and get them into the mainstream of nation-building.
“You’ll agree with me that women constitute over 50% of the population and the surest way to national development is to involve the total population of the country.
“If 50% of the population is neglected, it means the country cannot develop optimally; it’s like a country walking with one leg.”
The minister, who thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for giving his nod for the policy to be birthed, noted that it has been a long-time dream to have such a policy in place because of the importance of women in society.
“This has been a dream we’ve been pursuing and finally yesterday, Mr President gave the stamp, it is a legacy that Mr President is leaving behind by approving this Woman Economic Empowerment to help get women into the mainstream of financial plans to ensure that women are carried along in nation building,” she added.
