Dr Temitope Odetoye, Chairman of the Ilorin Branch of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), on Tuesday advised Professional women to dress responsibly, be goal-oriented and God-fearing in order to be respected and not sexually harassed.
Odetoye gave the advice while being inaugurated as the newly-elected Chairman of the Ilorin Branch of the NSE, at the 5th Female Engineers Conference, organised by the Nigerian Universities Engineering Student Association (NUESA), University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) chapter.
Speaking at the conference, entitled: “Challenging the status quo as a Female Engineer”, Odetoye admonished the students to strive to be significant in the field of Engineering and also work on self development so as to beat the status quo that only men are fit to be engineers.
She also advised the female Engineering students to “be focused and avoid distraction, have a mentor, manage their time wisely, work hard and be exceptional.
“You should learn the art of multi tasking, master emotional intelligence, take up challenges, avoid giving excuses, be a role model and earn respect of others in order to challenge the status quo,” she said.
Dr Nazmat Surajudeen-Bakinde, of the Department of Electrical Electronics Engineering, UNILORIN, who also delivered a lecture at the conference, advised the students to “hold on to God dearly, be confident in yourselves, honour your commitments, communicate effectively and know when to seek help when needed”.
Bakinde also admonished the students to not compromise on their standards, learn from failure, uplift those around them and be submissive to their future partners.
In her remarks, the Vice president of NUESA, Unilorin Chapter, Zainab Agboola, pointed out that the theme of the conference coincides with the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day; “Choose to Challenge”, a global awareness slogan that advocates the inclusion of females in all spheres of human endeavors.
Agboola further stressed that the theme of the Conference is a wake-up call for women to explore their full potentials in the field of engineering.
She noted that this will help to draw inspiration and mentorship from successful female Engineers and to gain valuable lessons that will serve as a game changer in their various lives and career.