Nigeria has joined the rest of the world to commemorate the 2021 International Day of Families.
In a statement, Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline K. Tallen said the UN General Assembly in 1993 declared May 15 every year as “The International Day of Families.”
She said the declaration emphasìzed the importance of families as a nucleus of any society.
Tallen further stated that the Day provided an opportunity to promote awareness of issues relating to the well-being of families.
She said the theme for this year’s commemoration was “Families and new Technologies.”
“The theme speaks to our current realities where the virtual space has become the new normal for engagements, in view of the lockdown measures put in place to flatten the curve of the COVID-19 Pandemic,” she said.
The minister recalled that lockdowns imposed by Government to flatten the curve forced families to stay at home, forced Schools to close indefinitely and business premises to shut down.
She said the use of ICT became the only alternative to keep in touch with family and friends.
“This forced every sphere of live into the virtual space, disrupting physical activities. At the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, we remember today, families who have been torn apart due to loss of livelihoods, those who have lost their loved ones and could only pay their last respects through the virtual space without physical contact.
“We cannot forget those who in a bid to secure the release of family members from the hands of their captors, sold off everything, due to the increasing activities of bandits and kidnappers and those cannot afford a square meal a day.
“The family is therefore the mirror of the society. Without the family, there is no society and without Mothers, there is no family. This is why the Government of President Muhammadu Buhari supports the empowerment of Women at all levels, including education.
“An educated woman has many choices and is able to navigate the virtual space made possible by new technologies at this trying time, when the world is constantly innovating new ideas and renovating existing ones to meet the current challenges.
“As we continue to provide the necessary platform for women to thrive, we will also focus our attention to the rural woman in Nigeria, who tills the ground to provide food for her family and contributes to sustaining the Agricultural sector,” the statement read.
Tallen call on fathers and mothers to join in the growing fight against terrorism and mindless killings and abduction for ransom.
She added that every bad egg causing mayhem was a product of a family.
“If we see something, let us say something to ensure that we win this fight, yes we can and the time is now,” the statement added.
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