Former Ekiti State Furst Lady,Erelu Bisi Fayemi has promised to support women
Speaking at this year’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York , Mrs Fayemi said she would continue to do whatever she can to ensure that women and girls live lives of dignity and respect.
According to her, “this year’s event was quite a busy one for me. 2025 is the 30th anniversary of the UN Beijing Conference on Women which took place in 1995. This year’s CSW was dedicated to analysing progress made since Beijing.
“The official government submissions and the many side-events, highlighted the achievements that have been made in the areas of policy and legal advancements, leadership and governance, education, media, health, STEM, the arts and other areas. However, significant challenges still persist, so a lot of work needs to be done to ensure that the next generations of women do not have to continue to contend with these problems.
I spoke at a number of panels which included reflections on the Beijing conference (organised by Women Radio, WARDC and Above Whispers), Women’s health and reproductive rights (WARDC), Inter-Generational Dialogues (Akina Mama wa Afrika and the African Women’s Development Fund) a forum on addressing the needs of older women (Help Age International) and Nigeria Women’s Day, organised by the Ministry of Women Affairs, Nigeria.
I also attended the AU-UN Workshop on Implementation of the new AU Convention on Violence Against Women and Girls, and a seminar on the 20th anniversary of Women’s International War Crimes Tribunal, in memory of the Japanese ‘Comfort Women’ during the second world war. It was wonderful to see old friends, mentors and colleagues again, such as Mama Gertrude Mongella, (the Secretary-General of the Beijing Conference), Charlotte Bunch (founder, center for Women’s Global Leadership) Kavita Ramdas (former CEO, Global Fund for Women), Ndai Sajor (co-convener, Women’ International War Crimes Tribunal) and Lydia Alpizar (former Executive Director, AWID).
I was also delighted to celebrate the start of the 40th anniversary celebrations of Akina Mama wa Afrika by cutting an anniversary cake with them. It is important for us to take stock of what we have been able to do and what we can still do to ensure that these global convenings mean something in the lives of ordinary women.
As I have done over the years, I will continue to do whatever I can to ensure that women and girls live lives of dignity and respect.