Douglas Blessing, Port Harcourt
A lecturer with the Mass Communication Department of the Rivers State University, Prof Godwin Okon, has stated that to achieve gender equality and empowerment of women and girl child, there will be need for urgent implementation of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG-5).
The Sustainable Development Goal 5 concerns gender equality and is fifth of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals established by United Nations in 2015.
Prof Okon made the call while peaking at a training organised by the Step-Up for Women in Journalism Initiative with Support from Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) under its Report Women programme funded by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
In his presentation on the topic “Facilitating the Implementation of Gender policies within Newsrooms and Organisations”, Okon noted that women have made giant strides in the media and corporate circles as well.
He said: “As a matter of fact, their footprints seem to be bolder in these settings than politics. Interestingly, these settings demand great intellect which on its own speaks volumes of their intellectual capacity. The question therefore is; why the seeming obscurity of these giant strides?
“Obviously, the mass media have failed to accord them due prominence. The mass media seem to be stereotypical in their reportage. If impressions are to be made from media reports, it would
appear it is still business as usual”.
Okon said the mass media should “celebrate the female icons so as to serve as inspiration to the aspiring youngsters”.
He revealed that “Contemporary studies by the United Nations and the World Bank show that focusing on women in development assistance and poverty reduction strategies leads to faster economic growth than gender neutral approaches”.
The University Don, stressed that the importance of gender equality in the socio-political socio-economic milieu of any country can never be overemphasised, however calls for concerted efforts and structures that can engender its realisation.
He said “The Rivers State government has tried positioning the women but the idea of making them play second fiddle may still not be the best. This incidentally is not a localized trend. Even in developed democracies like the United States of America, the scenario is the same”.
To achieve a successful nation, Prof Okon said the way forward is by “Holding the government accountable by way of media advocacy on the implementation of gender policies and statutes.
“Coalition of women professionals should make themselves seen and heard. Reconfiguring milestones on the actualisation of SDG 5 and cascading the mantra of breed without greed by building it around success stories”
Earlier in her remarks, the founder and Executive Director of Step-Up for Women in Journalism Initiative, Mrs Ann Godwin, advised female journalists to improve their career skills to become experts in the profession and notable in the society.
Mrs Godwin, urged the female journalists to bring themselves up to date on their bio-data and give their best in order to gain more fellowship trainings.
She noted the need for women to excel in the media space and other professions. “Women should begin to impact the nation by speaking up and drawing government’s attention to issues that have to do with policies and gender equality”
