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ikore
- September 24, 2021
Gender inequality is a reality around world particularly as regards economic and social development. In patriarchal societies, women are seen as subordinate to men and must always take the second place after men. In Nigeria, gender inequality is influenced by different cultures and beliefs. Women are believed to be home keepers while the men are the bread winners. The reality hits hard at the sudden demise of the bread winner. The woman suddenly becomes overburdened with responsibilities and low or no income to meet up the demands of dependents. Women in this situation hardly earn up to $1.90 a day thereby increasing the number of those living in extreme poverty.
In some parts of the country, insurgency and insecurity have forced many out of their houses in search of safety. UNHCR reports that there are over 2 million internally displaced people in Nigeria as at the year 2020. Of this increasing IDP population, women are mostly affected. Means of livelihood for these women are abandoned, their properties vandalized and they become financially vulnerable.
Women are however turning the tide in their increasing and concerted effort to be financially stable. As BBC report states that 40% of Nigerian women are entrepreneurs, which is the highest ratio of female business owners in the world. Driven, innovative and passionate about uplifting themselves and others around them, Nigerian women are also running more formal businesses, leveraging technological advancements to build innovative companies and organizing more than ever to support each other.
As part of Ikore’s effort to reach the economically deprived places and vulnerable communities torn apart by instability across Nigeria and Africa, we leverage the available opportunities in the Agricultural sector. Women play a central role in the agricultural value chain, forming it’s backbone by making up 52% of the total population in the sector (FAO). They also are responsible for up to 50% of the farm labor in Sub-Saharan Africa. Mostly, women are seen within the sector as entrepreneurs, livestock owners and smallholder farmers (FAO).
Ikore is partnering with ChannanHill on the Take and Give (TAG) project. The TAG project is aimed at empowering women especially those in areas with insurgencies by providing them with birds for poultry production or small ruminants (male and female) for breeding. One of the offspring of the ruminant is given to another woman in the community while the other is kept by the beneficiary. For the poultry value chain women are provided with poultry birds along with feed and off-takers. A 5% return is given by the women at the end of the project period. The objective is to empower these women at no extra cost to them, get them gainfully engaged in the long run and extend the project reach to as many women in the community as possible. To know more about this project and how you can partner with us you can send a mail to info@ikore.org