By Demi Adeniyi
In a bid to ensure inclusiveness and women’s empowerment, the Lagos State Government has taken its women’s financial inclusion advocacy to the hard-to-reach communities in the Araromi-Oguntimehin area of the Ibeju Lekki Local Government area of the State.
The advocacy programme, Human Capital Development (HDC), was implemented by the Lagos State Office of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in partnership with the Human Capital Development Africa and some organisations.
Speaking during the event, the Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Sustainable Development Goals, Dr Oreoluwa Finnih, said the advocacy was to increase awareness of financial literacy for women and educate them on the role of data in delivering better Human Capital Development outcomes towards achieving a smart Lagos city.
Dr. Finnih, represented by her Technical Assistant, Mrs Aasiah Solanke, advised beneficiaries to develop themselves financially and utilise reliable banking institutions to invest, save and grow their money for financial independence.
“The Human Capital Development project aims to increase women’s financial literacy in hard-to-reach communities. In Year 2024, a lot of women don’t know how to save, grow and invest their money in such a way that the money will work for them. Women should invest their money.
“Women should pay attention to where their money is going and what they are using their money for because the way money is, when you know how to grow your money by investing it, you will see that you can do better things for yourself, your family, and society,” she said.
Dr. Finnih also commended the Human Capital Development Africa and other partners for supporting the initiative, aimed at financial inclusion advocacy for women.
Some of the Lagos State Government partners on the advocacy trip, which included representatives of the National Identification Management Commission (NIMC), Lagos State Residents Registration Agency (LASRRA), and some financial institutions, such as Pay Business (Opay) and Cowrywise, captured over 100 women in their database with sensitisation on the importance of data collation to economic growth.
The partners, while speaking at the event, advised beneficiaries to build on the knowledge gained at the workshop to better their lives and improve their trading services using digital financial platforms.
Commending the Lagos State Government and the partners’ gesture on behalf of residents of his community, the traditional ruler of Araromi-Oguntimehin Town, Oba Lukmon Arowolo, thanked Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and like Oliver Twist, requested more infrastructural development, especially public schools and health centres for the new community.
“We appreciate the Lagos State Government, most especially our Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, for coming to our community to empower the women. We still need more support from the Lagos State Government. We need a standard primary and secondary school in our community,” he said.
Some of the beneficiaries who spoke during the exercise expressed their appreciation to the Lagos State Government for coming to their community to educate women on financial inclusion.
The Human Capital Development advocacy, which has reached six communities in Badagry, Bariga, Ojo, Ibeju Lekki, and Mushin this year, is expected to cover additional hard-to-reach communities in Ikorodu and Epe divisions of the state next year.
The programme is a project aimed at equipping women in underserved areas across 12 Local Government Areas and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in Lagos State with essential financial literacy, entrepreneurship training, and access to vital financial services.