The Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC)has surpassed the 35 per cent affirmative action of the United Nations on gender equality, Executive Secretary, Mr Emmanuel Jime, has said.
Jime said this while celebrating International Women’s Day (IWD) with the Women in Logistics and Transport Nigeria (WILAT), in Lagos on Wednesday.
The event had the theme: “Embrace Equity through Innovation and Technology’’.
Jime was represented by NSC’s Director of Human Resources, Mrs Ada Okam.
He said that the council was gender-friendly as reflected in the number of women in its top management cadre.
“Precisely, women constitute 45 per cent of the high-profile cadre as well as occupy other juicy positions.
“In line with embracing equity, the council has already trained over 65 per cent of its female staff locally and abroad in different capacity building programmes to properly position them in the organisation.
“Council will do more where our female members of staff demonstrate the requisite capacity. I commend our female staff for showing capacity by performing excellently in their designated offices,” he said.
The Chairperson of WILAT, Mrs Khadijat Sheidu-Shabi, said that 15 years ago, the percentage of women in the maritime industry was about seven.
According to her, women currently occupy more administrative positions.
She said, however, that there were not enough women in the technical sector of the maritime industry.
She listed the areas still dominated by men to include engineering and seafaring.
Mrs Ufon Usoro, National President, Chartered Institute of logistics and Transport (CILT), urged women to create opportunities for themselves.
“We should create opportunities and make the society to realise that we are hardworking, smart and ready to contribute,’’ she said.
Usoro urged women to avoid giving excuses but put in their best in any given assignment.
“You just need to rearrange yourself and do what the men do to get to the top,” she said.
She expressed satisfaction at the theme of the 2023 IWD celebration.
“I am very pleased about the theme of the IWD which is equity through technology. We need to create opportunities for ourselves, encourage our girls to be good in science and mathematics because that is where you start if you want to be good in using technology,” she said.
The state Chairman of CILT, Alhaji Bashir Ambi, said that no society would be complete without women.
Ambi appealed to the Federal Government to encourage more education of women in technology especially in rural areas.
