The family is the mirror of the society- Tallen

PRESS RELEASE

               IN COMMEMORATION OF 2021 INTERNATIONAL DAY OF FAMILIES 

Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic, Nigeria joins the rest of the world to commemorate the 2021 International Day of Families. The UN General Assembly in 1993 declared May 15 every year as The International Day of Families.  This declaration emphasìzes the  importance of families as a nucleus of any society. The Day provides  an opportunity to promote awareness of issues relating to the well-being of families.

The theme for this year's commemoration   is "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. It would be 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. 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.

I therefore call on Fathers and Mothers to join us in the growing fight against terrorism and mindless killings and abduction  for ransom. Every bad egg out there causing mayhem is 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. 

God bless Nigerian Families

God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria

Signed

Dame Pauline K. Tallen, OFR, KSG

Honourable Minister 

Federal Ministry of Women Affairs 

15th May, 2021