By; ALEX UANGBAOJE, Kaduna.
The Federal Government said she is working with development partners to generate actual data of the numbers of girl child, women and every other person at the Internally Displaced Persons Camps (IDPs) across the country.
Senator Aisha Alhassan, Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, disclosed this at a press briefing to commemorate the International Day of the Girl Child Tuesday in Kaduna.
She noted that there is no way the FG can empower the girls if there’s no statistical data on them, that she said was the reason for increased focus on gender data generation.
”Without data, we cannot talk to milestones, without data our planning process will be defective, our policy goal will be defeated and our implementation level will become immeasurable as we would not have a bench mark to work with. Therefore data is at the heart of any programme design and implementation.
”The girl child represents the continuation of the cycle of life. Without the girl child therefore, life is extinct. In her formative and later years, nothing should be spared to ensure that the girl child attains her full potential.
“Statistical data will enable us to plan better for their enrolment, retention and completion of primary, secondary and tertiary education, access to good health care and adequate nutrition.
“Access to quality information and services to puberty and reproductive health, protection from emerging social vices such as rape, drug abuse, kidnap, sexual exploitation and gender-based violence which are on the increase in the society.
“Generally, better gender-disaggregated economic data will improve policy on employment, income distribution, social security, access to credit, training, and other related areas.
“It is important not to just collect more data on women and girls, but to understand that biases in data and diversity in and among categories apply to men and women, as well boys and girls.”
The Minister commended the efforts of United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and other development partners who have been complementing government’s efforts at ensuring that the girl-child takes her rightful place in the scheme of affairs in the country. “With concerted efforts and their support, remarkable progress has been made in advocating for the girl-child.” Sen. Alhassan, added.
