>
By Emmanuel Adeleke
Wife of the president, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has charged the leadership of the armed forces to encourage women to join the military.
The first lady gave the charge at the Defence Headquarters’ one day Gender Mainstreaming Conference with the theme, ‘Building Capacity Through Gender Mainstreaming to Meet Security Challenges.’
Mrs Tinubu, who was represented by the wife of the vice president, Hajia Nana Shettima, commended the leadership of the armed forces for organising the programme.
“The theme is apt because it is about shaping a safer, better and more equitable world for all.
“I commend the leadership of the Armed Forces of Nigeria for accepting the gender mainstreaming concept in line with the Global Best Practice and the UN Security Council Resolution 1325,” she said
The first lady noted that security challenges in the country have become increasingly complex.
“Addressing these challenges effectively requests innovative and comprehensive approaches and gender mainstreaming stands as a powerful tool in our arsenal.
“Gender mainstreaming is now much more than a charity and a policy agenda, this is a fundamental issue about the way we perceive and address security challenges,” she added.
She said it is recognised that security encompasses not only military strength, but also the protection of human rights, economic stability, social and environmental sustainability.
Senator Tinubu said it requires a collective effort to address security issues and advance gender mainstreaming.
“We can start by ensuring that gender perspectives are integrated into security policies and strategies, encouraging more women to join and progress within the forces.
“We must promote women’s participation and leadership in security institutions, peace negotiations, conflict resolution efforts and bringing a more reconciliatory perspective into negotiations,” she stressed.
The first lady explained that education and training programmes should include gender sensitivity and awareness amongst security personnel.
She further said that women should not be discriminated against for getting married or bearing children while in the military.
Mrs Tinubu added that more cooperation is required towards elimination of gender-based violence within security forces.
“Through the Renewed Hope Initiative Project, we have strengthened women empowerment by letting women have access to training and education. Additionally, we have equipped the women with laptops and grants to support their educational and professional pursuits. This is because we believe that when you empower a woman, you empower a community and inevitably a nation. We, therefore, hope that the leadership within the armed forces will extend this dialogue beyond the confinement of this conference and empower women and their ranks,” she stated.
Speaking, Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, and Minister of Defence, Alhaji Mohammed Baduru, applauded the first lady and agreed to look into her recommendations.