By Joshua Olomu
Abuja, – Hepsibah Mommies Network, an NGO that empowers and rally support for single mothers and widows, has launched a support programme for widows in rural communities of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that more than 200 widows, drawn from different rural settlements, attended The launch of the programme on Sunday at the LGE Primary School in Galadimawa community.
The NGO gave food items, clothings, household and other relief items to the widows and their children, as well as micro business grants for a selected few.
The founder of the organisation, Mrs Violet Olalekan-Alabi, said that the gesture was part of the humanitarian initiative of the NGO, geared toward empowering the widows.
She said that the move was in line with the group’s core values of providing and empowering single mothers and widows in rural areas.
She added that “this initiative is specially for widows and single mothers in rural communities because that is where extreme poverty is, as many of them earn little or nothing as income to meet their needs.
“Although we are committed to providing assistance to single mothers in all categories, widows in rural areas need empowerment and succour.”
Olalekan-Alabi explained that beside providing relief materials to widows, the NGO had plans to provide skill acquisition and capacity building opportunities for them.
She noted that the NGO was set to have quarterly meeting for empowerment talks, social interactions and sensitisation on healthy lifestyle for rural widows across the FCT.
“At Hepsibah, we see each single mother and widow as courageous and worthy of hope, as our focus is not on why and how they arrived at their current situation.
“We are focused on how to assist them to pull through these seasons of their lives.
“A national conference will hold every year with a wide variety of workshops on capacity building, health and how to cope as a single mother,”she said.
Olalekan-Alabi, however, called on philantropists, corporate organisations and Nigerians of goodwill to identify with the initiative.
“We are opened to donations of clothing and household items to help us continue the assistance for these mothers.”
Some of the widows thanked the NGO, adding that the initiative was a beacon of hope and support.
Mrs Sarah Jonathan, a widow and mother of five, said she was proud of the initiative, and was ready to be available for their subsequent capacity building programmes.
She said: “this is a happy day for me because strangers who are not our family members have come to put smile on our faces.”