wimbiz
my name is foluso gbadamosi and i absolutely love wimbiz. my most impactful experience with wimbiz was
everyone needs a big sister! ! so wimbiz is giving some girls in niger state big sisters. # wimbiz urltoken
the wimbiz mentoring program has clarified and increased my confidence in my career choices .
wimbiz secretariat. 200b isale eko avenue. dolphin estate, ikoyi, lagos, nigeria .
wimbiz women on boards (wimboard) to increase the rep of women on boards across all sectors in nigeria through advocacy efforts, building a database of board ready women, mentoring & a wimboard institute in partnership with ie bus sch spain and lbs (wimboarddb @ wimbiz. org) # wimbiz urltoken
she went further to explain how wimbiz as an organisation is achieveing its goals as well as aspirations .
personal branding – julia oku - jacks – head corporate communication, moni pulo limited and wimbiz board of trustee .
welcome to the wimbiz blog, a go to resource for women in management, business and public service ...
accenture nigeria supports the wimbiz (women in business and management) initiative to help women overcome the economic challenges they face .
the women in management, business and public service group (wimbiz) has selected aishah ahmad, cfa as its new chairperson .
aishah extended her thanks and gratitude to the members of the group who has given a lot to the group while acknowledging the council who put their faith in her “at wimbiz it is very much a team effort. thus, i must acknowledge the executive council who shape the execution of the wimbiz mission; the wimbiz secretariat, led by a dynamic executive director, mosun layode; who operationalize and make it all happen. i also appreciate everyone who has been part of the organizing, fundraising, speaking, moderating at wimbiz. all of you who have contributed over the years donating your skills and time. you played your part share in the glory of what wimbiz is today .
200b isale eko avenue, dolphin estate, ikoyi, lagos, nigeria. mobile: + 234 01 460 5625 email: wimbiz @ urltoken
the 2017 wimbiz annual lecture themed “ bold steps in the face of uncertainty” which held on tuesday, march 7 challenge women to push ...
my wish is that every woman gives wimbiz a try and makes up their mind from an insiders perspective. you will be pleasantly surprised. 15 years of building and growth has gone into wimbiz and it is stronger and better than ever. i look forward to welcoming the new entrants and collaborating with those of us already part of wimbiz. it' s been a colorful journey so far and i' m looking forward to the adventures to come .
my wimbiz story
any time women come together with a collective intention, it' s a powerful thing. whether it' s sittin ...
wimbiz is a non - profit organization that has, over the last 16 years, implemented programs that inspire, empower and advocate for greater representation of women in leadership positions in the public and private sector. wimbiz collaborates with credible domestic and international global organizations to deliver programs, which have influenced over 93, 825 women since inception .
wimbiz: founded in 2002 by 14 individuals who identified a serious issue concerning women in the workplace and in business, particularly in the areas of leadership capacity building and avenues for networking for growth. wimbiz is well - known for increasing the proportion of women in senior positions in corporate organization and on boards. website | | twitter | | facebook
“the story of why i am standing here, as wimbiz chairperson, is very much the story of wimbiz and to my mind captures the true essence of our organization. for me wimbiz is an outlet to channel my energies, express my creativity and give back in an area i personally care about – inspiring and empowering others. over the years, i have been challenged, leveraged my skills, and through the example and inspiration of other high achieving women, strengthened my resolve to dream bigger than i ever thought possible. ”
“i especially would like to congratulate the outgoing chairperson of the wimbiz executive council, osayi alile for a successful tenure, and being the first chairperson of the ‘next generation’. no transition is without its challenges and the grace with which you handled your role at this critical moment in the history of wimbiz shall be applauded for years to come. as we all do now .
network outside my sector: i knew i needed to start meeting people across sectors, outside my existing network and building relationships in professional and structured organizations. wimbiz immediately came to mind .
robers, f. , idigbe, i. , austen - peters, b. , oku - jacks, j. and okonjo, c. (2014). wimbiz findings on female representation on boards and top management of commercial banks in nigeria (2012 – 2013). [ online ] wimbiz. org. available at: urltoken [ accessed 30 dec. 2016 ] .
wimbiz was formed in 2002 to improve the success rate of female entrepreneurs and increase the proportion of women in senior positions in corporate organizations in nigeria. it has set out to foster improved networking amongst businesswomen and corporate professionals to help address issues specific to women in all areas of economic endeavour. through support and encouragement, wimbiz hopes to see more women in positions of leadership in nigeria .
managing director @ hadizabalausman is a speaker at the # wimbiz master class currently going on at the george hotel ikoyi. she is making a presentation on “equity and inclusiveness: a panacea for national development” urltoken
i attended a few annual lectures and conferences depending on whether i liked the speaker, i found the theme interesting and even in some cases based on too numerous to ignore text messages and emails from wimbiz devotees .
women in management, business and public service (wimbiz), is a nigerian non - profit organization formed in 2001 by 14 individuals (13 women and 1 man) who identified a serious issue concerning women ...
accenture has supported wimbiz for the past 10 years. partnering with the initiative demonstrates our commitment to helping women overcome the economic challenges they face and underpins accenture' s respect for the contribution of women to society and the world .
in 2015, under the wimbiz umbrella i got the opportunity to be a speaker at the global summit of women conference in são paulo, brazil on renewable energy and was invited to serve on the wimbiz executive council. i understand the enormity and responsibility of being a role model, moreover those who had served before me had made huge strides that one would have to improve on which is no mean feat but what better platform to ride on to meet my csr goals of improving the lot of career women, young women and female entrepreneurs. wimbiz has now become more of giving back with the satisfaction of seeing the impact in the life' s of women and their families and youths .
are you networking the right way? hear what @ busimkhumbuzi has to say... # fullinkmedia # thelifeofink # newmedia # networking # wimbiz # networkingtips # sheleadsafrica # naijabrandchick # businesstips # womeninbusiness # business # femaleentrepreneurs # connect urltoken
adeola azeez adeola azeez is the deputy country head of the deutsche bank nigeria where she oversees the bank’s business operations including managing liaisons between the deutsche bank offshore and nigerian banks. she has over 20 years’ expertise in correspondent banking. she was one of the founding members of women in management, business and public service (wimbiz) and was elected in 2011 as the chairperson of wimbiz. she has a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the university of lagos and llb from the university of warwick .
posted on march 19, 2013, in africa, career and tagged # crossriver, business and public service (wimbiz), calabar, nigeria, university of calabar, winning without compromise, women in management. bookmark the permalink. leave a comment .
adesola, .. , awosik, i. , ahmad, a. and ayen, y. (2014). wimbiz findings on female representation on boards and top management of financial institutions in nigeria. a synopsis of the results of board and top management survey conducted by wimbiz based on figures available from banks websites and annual reports as at december 2013. [ online ] lagos: women in management, business and public services, pp. 2 - 6. available at: urltoken [ accessed 28 dec. 2016 ] .
4. adeola azeez, deputy country head, deutsche bank nigeria: adeola azeez is the deputy country head of the deutsche bank nigeria where she oversees the bank’s business operations including managing liaisons between the deutsche bank offshore and nigerian banks. she has over 20 years’ expertise in correspondent banking. she was one of the founding members of women in management, business and public service (wimbiz) and was elected in 2011 as the chairperson of wimbiz. she has a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the university of lagos and llb from the university of warwick .
a resonant theme with extremely successful, strong, and inspiring women is that they either have a very supportive spouse or a strong support system! .. so can women really have it all? yes! with the right network and / or mentorship support structure. # wimbizannualconference # wimbiz
imoukhuede noted that societies that do not allow women to contribute to societal development cannot grow, adding that companies with more women on board suffer fewer crises. he said that the wimbiz has become a beacon of light not for only women but all well meaning stakeholders in nigeria and across nigeria .
there is gender issues in manufacturing, but things are much easier now, no room for errors, quality control now is key. . thus women are encouraged to join in manufacturing, women have the ability to endure pain and this is what manufacturing is about. - kofo akinkugbe # wimbiz urltoken
nov 3, 2009 - when i received the letter from the chairperson of the women in management and business (wimbiz), mrs bola adesola, inviting me to be guest speaker of the organisation' s 8th annual conference, i excitedly agreed, without reading in detail the theme of the conference .
aishah is passionate about global investing and promoting diversity & women’s (financial) inclusion; she regularly speaks on these topics and advises on the board of several companies. she is currently the chairperson of the executive council of women in management, business & public service, wimbiz (www. wimbiz. org); a leading women - focused not - for - profit organization in sub - saharan africa. she is also a member of the steering committee on cherie blair foundation’s, technology for growth project; a groundbreaking learning intervention programme for female entrepreneurs in nigeria, and was an alternate director at friesland campina wamco (2010 – 2014), a global company in the dairy industry .
president of council of the nigerian stock exchange, mr. aigboje aig - imoukhuede, weekend, urged women to have a vision and game plan so as to thrive in a challenging environment. he said this during the women in management, business and public service (wimbiz) annual lecture themed: “thriving in tough times: navigating challenging environments. ”
our previous outreach programme has attracted well over a thousand female and male students from specific and surrounding tertiary institutions. our facilitators are drawn from our pool of wimbiz mentors, associates and seasoned facilitators who would walk the participants through their experiences and hopefully pass onto them the rules of survival in our society and the need to be more accountable for their actions .
he added those crises are test of ability to overcome crisis, saying, “if you do not thrive in crisis you do not worth leading others. ” in her welcome address, wimbiz chairperson, mrs. osayi alile, said that the topic was chosen as a result of the realities of nigeria and the need for people especially women to prepare and learn the most out of the situation .
5. aisha ahmad one of the most respected and admired women in corporate nigeria, aisha is the head of consumer banking at diamond bank plc, one of the fastest growing retail banks in nigeria. this classy executive is currently the chairperson of the executive council of women in management, business & public service (wimbiz), a leading women - focused not - for - profit organization .
wimbiz, a non - profit making organisation for women in business in nigeria, has released a report on female representation on top management boards of financial institutions in the country based on their 2012 – 2014 report. studies have shown that there is a gradual increase in women representation at top board positions – which is remarkable but still very inadequate. confidence and acceptance levels have also increased for women occupying leadership positions in nigeria .
she is the founder / ceo of the chair centre, sokoa chair centre limited and tcc security systems. she is also a fellow of the aspen global leadership network and a multiple award winning entrepreneur. she has founded, and supports, many non - profits institutions. she is also a board member of the women in management and business (wimbiz) and convention on business integrity. she is a pastor of the fountain of life church and she hosts a popular tv programme called, business his way .
“so, the future awaits us… and as we approach our 15th year as an organization, we are keenly aware of all that is yet to be accomplished. there are simply too few women steering the ship at the national level, and we surely cannot thrive with less than half of our nation’s skills and human resource left behind. thus, we must enhance women’s leadership, empowering them with the skills required to step up and stand out. strengthening the pipeline of eligible women at board level remains a top priority, as well as increasing the participation of women in all aspects of political and public life. we shall also readily leverage technology & big data to engage our growing multinational audience and position wimbiz as the key repository of research concerning women. most importantly, we must also ensure that wimbiz continues to provide a platform for every woman to get involved and give back to other women – in whatever way she chooses. after - all, we are ever so powerful when we walk together on this journey than when we go it alone! ”
she serves on several boards including house of tara and the nigeria higher education foundation as a non - executive director, and is also an associate member of wimbiz, serving on its planning committee since 2015. she was most recently a 2015 finalist for the access bank w award for young professional of the year. after eight years working in wealth management, arese is now engaging young africans on the importance of financial literacy and the impact it has on helping them get money, keep money and grow money as they drive the continent forward .
i had been aware of wimbiz from its founding year, the concept was interesting but not high on my priority at that time. timing as they say is crucial because our times and seasons vary. i enjoyed the gist and snippets of information i gathered about the conferences and other activity and at that time it was more than enough for me, somehow you hear more social gist than substance, perhaps people were hoarding the real value, making light of the substance within or didn' t know how to express the value they were getting from the organisation and the networks .
ibukun awosika mrs awosika is the chairman, first bank of nigeria. she is the first woman to take up this position since the establishment of the bank. before her appointment, she was a non - executive director of the bank. ibukun awosika graduated with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from obafemi awolowo university, ile - ife and holds an mba from iese business school, barcelona, spain. she is an alumna of the lagos business school chief executive programme. she is also a board member of the women in management and business (wimbiz) and convention on business integrity .
12. arese ugwu arese is a money guru and the brain behind smart money africa, a platform that delivers quality content on financial literacy. she is the head of wealth management at partnership investment plc. she sits on the boards of house of tara international ltd and the nigeria higher education foundation as a non - executive director and is an associate member of wimbiz. fiercely ambitious and driven, arese recently organized the first edition of the smart money africa woman workshop which was attended by women from all works of life, and is likely to be replicated all around africa due to its huge success .
our campus outreach program themed “winning without compromise” (wiwic) is one of the major initiative through which wimbiz has achieved its goals and objectives. one of the main focus of this programme is to prepare undergraduates on workplace balance, business and health issues by challenging them at an interactive session to unveil, discuss and resolve their expectations, opportunities and / or fears. we have held this programme in five campuses namely: the university of lagos, lagos state university, university of port harcourt, university of abuja and the university of ibadan. this year we have chosen the university of calabar and we intend to target young undergraduates of higher institutions .
74. osaru alile osaru is a high - spirited, vibrant young woman; she loves to explore various cultures through travelling and exciting adventures. in 2007, she co - founded caxton alile design; a pro - african creative force and founding company of caxton alile living, cc interiors & its new initiative eterior spaces which aims at # creatinghappyspaces for all, irrespective of ones budget. osaru acts as a global shaper in the lagos hub of the world economic forum (wef - osaru is a vital voices grow fellow, wimbiz associate, mara mentor and the committee chair for education, interior design association of nigeria (idan). she is very passionate about creativity, entrepreneurship, education and the empowering of nigerian youths .
wimbiz is not all work, there' s lots of fun too. there are a few clubs that help us de - stress and gives us the opportunity to enjoy our hobbies with like minded women, one of which is the food and tavel club. i' ve acted as co - chair of this club and met many foodies, we meet monthly to try out new restaurants, recipes, cuisines of other lands and local food. we get instructions and learn how to make the food under the chef' s instruction. as if that' s not enough fun, anchoring the associates inductions in abuja and lagos and the after parties are some of the ways we' ve let our hair down while welcoming and meeting new associates .
41. ibukun awosika “aunty bili” as she is fondly called by those close to her, ibukun awosika is a consummate professional, a successful entrepreneur, and a mentor to many. she is the founder and ceo of the sokoa chair centre group comprising of companies involved in furniture manufacturing. in 2015, she was appointed as the first female chairman, board of directors first bank nigeria. with high interest in social issues including women, ibukun is a co - founder and past chairperson wimbiz and afterschool graduate development centre (agdc) – a facility which she promoted to help address youth employability and enterprise issues in nigeria. she is deeply committed to mentoring upcoming generation of entrepreneurs and through the tfd series, and in partnership with tara fela - durotoye, she has mentored hundreds of women .
describing vision, he said, “there is nothing more important than having a vision and there is nothing in life that has not been achieved without a vision, everything that you see has been achieved through a vision .
it is vision that makes you entrepreneurs and makes you succeed, vision is fundamental to survival, your vision is your anchor of hope and without a vision when you are beaten down you have no reason to get up .
“your vision is your source of confidence, stability motivate your passion and your conviction to succeed. dreams are good but then we wake up, plans are the actionable steps you must exude successfully to make your vision a reality. without a game plan there is nothing to focus on, focus is relevant in the contest of a plan, focus without a plan is meaningless, ” he said .
alile said, “when we go into business we are always looking at the profit of today but when you go into business with a long term vision, you find out that regardless of the ups and downs and some challenges you face, at the end you are able to achieve those goals. so i think is a process but we needed to be prepared for that process having a strong decision. ”
comments expressed here do not reflect the opinions of vanguard newspapers or any employee thereof .
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our annual conference has earned its place in the hearts of leading women in business and careers who are seeking opportunities for personal and professional growth. the conference attracts over 1, 000 women from diverse areas of the corporate, business and public sectors, including indigenous and international delegates. visit urltoken to read more. to register for this year' s conference, click here
my name is saudat salami. i am the founder / ceo of urltoken. we are an
my experience has been every bit inspiring and rewarding. it was one of the best
how to apply interested and qualified candidates should forward their application and cv to: careers @ urltoken using the position applied for as the subject of the email. note: only applicants key responsibilities / roles
have a minimum of five (5) years of relevant experience in progressive positions .
strong technical and organizational skills in addition to excellent written and verbal communication skills, in a professional environment .
a high level of integrity, accuracy, dependability, enthusiasm, and confidentiality .
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4 months ago, these ladies started their journey to changing the world by enroling in the # wimboardtraining in partnership with @ iebusiness today, ladies and gentlemen, we are pleased to introduce the gamechangers - the # wimboardfellows class of 2018. urltoken
after attending last year' s conference, this attendee' s false mindset was completely debunked. before you nurse the idea that the person sitting beside you is snobbish, think about the fact that they might be shy or that it might be their first time attending the said event. urltoken
participants with profesor joleine mudd after her very insightful session. up next is the session on
strategy & vision
by professor joseph pistrui # wimboardtraining in partnership with @ iebusiness urltoken
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which held on tuesday, march 7 challenge women to push the envelope and chart new territories in line with our objective to empower women to achieve their potential and become meaningful contributors to economic development. the lecture by mo' abudu was delivered on the eve of the international women’s day, in efforts to align with this year’s theme, “be bold for change” .
who are you? what is your unique selling proposition? (mo’s is persistence and consistency). what are your strengths and weaknesses? build on your strengths but give some attention to your weaknesses. you can take steps to correct some of your shortcomings .
it is your responsibility to seek and find your god given purpose. you are more likely to excel if you do what you are made to do .
by staying put in your room. you do have to venture out to meet people and be connected .
believe in your dream no matter how big or scary it is. write your ideas down. there will be “dream makers” and
dream killers. ” don' t get put off by the dream killers; learn from their criticism. if necessary, go back to the drawing board and come back stronger .
that can execute. build partnerships. don' t be casual about such relationships; trust is critical. partnerships can and do break up. legal agreements should clearly address such eventualities, including exit .
how relatable is your business? it is important to make noise about your business. invest in promoting your brand and let people know what you do. by embracing social media, you can share your story widely .
christine lagarde shared her thoughts on the world’s glacial progress towards gender parity in a davos session on disrupting the status quo of gender roles .
“we have been talking about it for as long as i can remember, ” she said, noting that, according to world economic forum research, it would take 170 years for the economic gender gap to close, with the rate of progress stalling in the wake of the financial crisis .
the head of the imf, who was was formerly france’s first female finance minister, then gave some examples to shed light on why parity remains elusive .
“we have to identify our own biases, ” she said. “sometimes you have to identify that when a board member who happens to be a woman takes the floor, guess what, many of the male board members start to withdraw physically, they start to look at their papers, to look at the floor… and you need to disrupt that. ”
lagarde, who once walked out of a job interview when she was told her prospects would be limited as a woman, also said: “when i was finance minister, very often the presidents of companies would come and report on their strategies, and when i asked them about their board composition, they would always say - ‘i would love to have a woman on the board, i just can’t find any, and the ones i know are fully booked. ’ so i had a bit of paper in my bag with the names of 20 women on it. ”
progress is not easy or straightforward, though. she said that in order for the imf to reach its gender quotas, in some areas they would have to hire only women for the next five years, which made her uncomfortable. once they had reached the top, women should support other women: “it’s our responsibility to help others progress along the way. ”
in the same session, sharmeen obaid - chinoy, the oscar - winning documentary maker, took aim at the obsession with women and motherhood .
“women, even if they’re very, very successful, they keep getting asked: how do you juggle family and work? how many male ceos get asked, how do you juggle being a ceo and having a family? i refuse to answer the question. i am a film - maker. what is a female film - maker? ”
isabel de saint malo de alvarado, panama’s foreign minister, shared an anecdote on how family roles can be deeply ingrained - even for high - flying women .
“i’ve always been a professional but i’ve always taken care of my family… my daughter needed to go to the doctor. i told her, the appointment is made, daddy is taking you, and she asked, but will he know what to tell the doctor? and i said, but he’s sitting right next to you... many times men just don’t take on some roles because we don’t let them. ”
my name is saudat salami, i am the founder / ceo of urltoken, an online grocery retailer targeted at working women tha ...
no matter how much impact we have on the lives of women within our network, we can never share their stories as well as they can. which is ...
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i think my excitement arose from my personal knowledge of the sterling qualities of a number of the members of the board of trustees, and a general knowledge of some of the members, whose accomplishments i have always felt proud to be associated with .
my excitement has since came under control when i started planning to write this address, i scrutinized the letter more closely and focused my attention on the vision of the organisation which is
to be the catalyst that elevates the profile and influence of women in management and businesses
and also the theme of the conference which was to
change the game and make a difference
.
i asked myself if i had not walked into a veiled discussion of the gender issue. what was i going to say ?
it is not because i do not like the discussion on gender issues. rather it is because i believe very seriously that words have consequences than we care to think and because somewhat too often, we have, to my own personal discomfort, paid lip service to gender issues by saying many nice things and doing too little things. i did not want to be part of a number in directionless crowd .
however, having had the privilege of speaking at the opening ceremony of the 9th annual conference of the committee of wives of lagos state officials recently, i have found a perspective that allows me to say again what i mean while hopefully addressing the theme and any sub - plots and themes that lie beneath it .
although i have often wondered when the men whose wives work for the lagos state public service will form their own committee, as the number of women in the lagos state public service continues to increase at a rate when lagos can now be said to have become liubirin (the land of women) and i mean this
, as a compliment .
nevertherless, i am here, and speak i must, even as i express my sincere appreciation personally, and on behalf of my government, to the board of trustees for considering me worthy of such honour .
in a rapidly changing world, heralding the information technology revolution, i think all of us must realize how privileged we are not only to be witnesses but also critical individuals who will have a role to play in shaping this revolution. i have recently consistently asked myself how those who mid - wifed the industrial revolution will feel today if they were alive .
the face of international business has changed. the rules that worked 50 years ago have become inadequate to deal with today' s demands .
businesses that were the mainstay of families, states and nations have disappeared, and many more are threatened. the swiss watch industry that prided itself on the art and craftsmanship of a generation of watchmakers has given way to battery operated watches; film developing and film developers, who• prided themselves on their darkroom skills to produce wonderful photographs have given way to digital photography and digital printers; and threatened the entrepreneurial acumen of world renown brands like kodak .
it also remains to be seen how xerox, who taught us to copy will react to the changing times as the newspaper industry is dying gradually as many more read their newspapers on the move from blackberries, with its adverse effect on the newsprint manufactures, and their suppliers of pulp and trees; everybody is now a broadcaster on the internet through facebook, twitter and many more that will emerge .
as fareed zakariya posits, on the information highway ,
... everybody is connected but no one is in control
.
the oil industry will be seriously challenged in the jobs it can sustain from exploration to dispensing of finished products from petrol stations as the world goes green in a race to protect the environment and• produce battery powered cars within less than a decade from now .
distinguished ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the future that is here now. how are women in business going to be affected? how are their homes and our societies where they play an all too important role going to fare? how can
women in business
change the game and make a difference
to secure the future ?
i must confess that i do not have any ready made answers. i have however in response to this invitation gone back into some history to look (or a guide from the past, to understand the present, and attempt to chart a course for the future .
first, i must say that my views about the future are based on a bottom - up approach, in which everybody is allowed to playa role no matter how little. that of course comes with a caveat that no one must be expected to playa role in which he or she has a natural physiological or psychological limitation and that nature cannot be wrong in making us different but complimentary to one another .
one of the first historical references that i came across is contained in peter iron' s' book, a people' s history of the supreme court, which discussed the role of abigail adams, who he described as
... the strong - willed wife of john adams
who was a revolutionary who later became the president of the united states .
shortly before john adams helped in drafting the declaration of independence in 1776, abigail wrote to him :
i long to hear that you have declared an independency - and by the way, in the new code of laws which i suppose it will be necessary for you to make i desire that you would remember the ladies, and be more generous and favourable to them than your ancestors. do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. remember, all men would be tyrants if they could. if particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice and no representation
essentially, from those early times, she was asking her husband to create a role for women in the nation building process. to our regret, he did not listen and we are only today opening up the space for women, as if we are doing them a favour, when indeed they have more than a passing role to play in nation building, which is the biggest business on the globe .
in nigeria, there is a rich history of such women, who went beyond writing to their husbands, and actually stepping out from behind them or away from beside - them, which ever you prefer, to make far reaching and enduring contributions to direct business and indeed nation building .
in his monograph titled ,
culture, gender and development, dr. r. o. soetan recounted the outstanding achievements of a yoruba woman in business, efunsetan aniwura .
efunsetan aniwura of egba origin, was a big - time farmer and producer of food crops in ibadan. at a stage in her rise to wealth and fame, she was said to have had as many as 2, 000 slaves on her farms (johnson, 1963: 393). she probably went into food processing and trading (commercial) activities. she was conferred with the title of iyalode of ibadan and in the early 1870s ranked among the social, economic and political elite in the city .
similarly, madam tinubu, an owu - egbo, made her fortune in abeokuta, badagry and lagos in the 1850s and early 1860s and was conferred with the title of iyalode of egba in 1864. these two wealthy women invested heavily in business enterprises, attained to prosperity, high chieftainship and political power .
apart from these women, history, particularly nigerian history is replete with the names and achievements of many women of substance who have contributed invaluably to our nation building process and i must say some of them are also here with us today .
with what we have seen from history, the kind of businesses that were done by efunsetan aniwura have given way to more formal structures, which themselves are now at risk .
globalization has come upon us. man' s most enduring form of exchange, capitalism, predicated on principles of free trade, market forces and credit has come under serious challenge .
i am reasonably confident that these changes have come to stay. what lies ahead of us is a common resolve to create a new legal order, a new body of rules to regulate how business will be done in a most uncertain future .
what should be our guide or compass to enable us conceive these new body of rules? what roles will women in business be expected to play in delivering these rules and in implementing them .
it is my humble view that the future of the whole planet depends significantly on the role that africa assumes within the next few years .
as the most populous black race, nigeria cannot stand on the fence. our minds must be alert, our hands must be at work and our voices must be heard in the process of developing this new body of rules .
it seems to me that the biggest economic' activities that lie ahead will be found in activities targeted at protecting the environment because our planet is at risk .
new ways of doing business in a way that puts the environment at less risk and affords protection to all of us are a matter of urgent necessity .
as leaders of the world head for copenhagen in december this year, hoping to find common areas of commitment to environmental challenges of the world, i anticipate that decision reached and submitted for implementation will affect women, businesses and their families in africa and nigeria .
for example, if we must stop tree felling and encourage tree planting, if we must reduce fossil fuel like coal, how many businesses and cottage industries, bukateria and the like run by africans and nigeria women to support their families and sodeties will be affected by these decisions .
i believe this is the time for all of us, and in this context, women, to be more proactive in the search for sustainable sources of alternative energy on which businesses depend .
as our senate begins the consideration of the petroleum industry bill, and the national government commits to its plan to deregulate the supply and distribution of petroleum products very far reaching consequences will occur in the sector that represents well over 90% (ninety percent) of our nation' s economy .
if we get it right, our economy will head north. if we get it wrong, very severe strictures of poverty will be inflicted on our people especially women, who bear the brunt .
in order therefore to change the
game and make the difference
, i urge women here to sufficiently arm themselves with enough information about the proposed reforms in this sector and participate in the process
of formulating the rules that will govern the
game
of managing the petroleum industry .
before i conclude, i will like to advert our attention to a major area where women can lead us to a most decisive change. this is in the area of population management .
it is now common knowledge that more than two - thirds of the world' s population live below or in poverty. it is also no longer debatable that the most defining problem of the modern age is how to combat poverty which afflicts more of the population of developing nations like our country and the impact is more severely felt and borne by women in the very many injustices like abuse, trafficking and prostitution they are subjected to in order to survive .
i think that women in business more than any other people know and understand that in business and enterprise management, efficiency and success is dictated by the prudent utilization and allocation of resources that are always• limited .
it is therefore incumbent upon all of us to see our country, and each of the component states as enterprises that must be effectively and efficiently managed by judicious utilization and allocation of resources in order to reduce scarcity and poverty .
how far can the land boundaries of lagos expand, how much more of our water bodies can we afford to sand - fill to create land to house an increasing population? has the time not now come upon us, when we must begin to right - size our population through family planning to fit our resources .
can a family with one bedroom rise out of poverty if they make 6 (six) children to live in that 1 (one) room on the basis of only the hope that life will get better .
distinguished ladies and gentlemen, women in business, this is one game that you must help to change by leading the advocacy for the benefits of family planning as a way of improving quality of life and fighting poverty .
i do not wish to be misunderstood as suggesting that it is only your responsibility, but i appreciate that you can play more than an important role in leading this change .
the old arguments that were the foundation of very large families, such as the need for extra farm hands, poor healthcare that limited the survival chances of children and the preference for a particular gender of child have been' demystified as simply not tenable .
mechanized farming has shown that you do not need so, many hands to plant or harvest, immunization has improved the survival of our children from what is was over 4 (four) decades ago when i was born .
if there was still any doubt about what a girl child can achieve, the members of this organization of confident, intelligent and successful women provide the answer to the sceptics .
if we do not restrain our procreative urge, we cannot lift ourselves out of poverty. i urge you not to ignore this call to lead a most impactful change .
it remains now for me to conclude by once again thanking you all for this honour of this privilege to deliver this address .
governor babatunde fashola san (l) receiving a gift from mrs. bola adesola (r) during the opening ceremony of the 2009 women in management & business annual conference. governor babatunde fashola san (r), mrs. bola adesola (m) and mrs. hairat aderinsola balogun (l) at opening ceremony of 2009 women in management & business annual conference. other speeches jobs & economy
women in management , business and public service ( also known as wimbiz ) is a nonprofit organisation for nigerian women . the organization is located in ikoyi , lagos . it was founded in the year 2001 to promote women in all spheres of life with focus on women 's protection and development in public and corporate entities through regular training and networking . the establishment was formed by thirteen vision aligned women and one man . 
women in management, business and public service (also known as wimbiz) is a nonprofit organisation for nigerian women. the organization is located in ikoyi, lagos. it was founded in the year 2001 to promote women in all spheres of life with focus on women's protection and development in public and corporate entities through regular training and networking. the establishment was formed by thirteen vision aligned women and one man.
women in management, business and public service (also known as wimbiz) is a nonprofit organisation for nigerian women. the organization is located in ikoyi, lagos. it was founded in the year 2001 to promote women in all spheres of life with focus on women's protection and development in public and corporate entities through regular training and networking. the establishment was formed by thirteen vision aligned women and one man.