Develop A Comprehensive Gender Policy, Rivers Govt Advised

The Rivers State Government has been urged to develop a comprehensive gender policy that will encompass all the laws already passed and policies to aid gender mainstreaming and social inclusion in the state.
This was part of resolutions arrived at on Wednesday July 13, a one-day sensitization meeting in collaboration with WRAPA on the National Gender Policy for Rivers State Government ministries and agencies at Aldgate Hotel, Port Harcourt at the instance of a gender focused non-governmental organization, Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Center.
Executive Director of Kebetkache, Emem Okon said the aim of the meeting was to identify the inequality gaps in the government processes and fashion out how to bridge them.
Emem Okon the convener, explained that for good governance to prevail, the needs and concerns of all segments of the society-men, women, boys, girls, people with disability and the elderly-must be built into government programmes and policies. She said the absence of social inclusion in governance explains the claims by government of having carried out programmes which supposed beneficiaries say they are not aware of.
The meeting identified as key to effective planning, proper data of people in the communities noting that this is evidently absent in the state although the Bureau of Statistics has some information in their data base.
Participants agreed that conducting Gender and Social Inclusion Analysis and Assessment will help to identify gaps in how systems serve or do not serve different groups and promotes acceptance and ownership of programmes and projects.
It recognized and lauded the initiatives of the state governor, Nyesom Wike on gender inclusion and mainstreaming in politics and called for a legislation to make the gains permanent.
It noted also, the need to train on leadership as well as sensitize those in leadership in government departments and community leaders on the gender policy and how to mainstream it into governance.
At the end of deep deliberations, it was resolved that there should be a conscious and continuous unified and comprehensive data collation on community people in the state for ease of planning and development.
Kebetkache was charged to reach out and train government departmental heads on the National Gender Policy and ways to implement it and traditional rulers as well as community leaders while a comprehensive Rivers State Gender and Social Inclusion Policy should be developed and passed into law.
The Rivers State Ministry of Women Affairs was charged to spear head the state gender policy development and its implementation, and the National Orientation Agency in the state should undertake the sensitization of all Rivers citizens especially at the grassroots, on the gender and social inclusion policy.
In attendance were the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Women Affairs, Barrister (Mrs) N Uriri, Director National Orientation Agency, Rivers State, Mr Young M. Ayotamuno, Assistant Director Rivers State Independent Election Commission, RSIEC, Sarah Menmey-Amgbare, representative of the Rivers State Director, NOSDRA, Kate George, Pius Dukor ED Pius Dukor Foundation, Chief Constance Meju, coordinator, Center for Media Environment and Development Communications, CEMEDEC, among others.