Residents of the Kabusa community in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Shamies Unusual Hearts Foundation, have decried the rising rate of hardship in the country.
The foundation also put smiles on the faces of over 150 widows and their households with the donation of food items and cash gifts to commemorate International Mother’s Day in 2023.
Addressing journalists during the outreach, the founder of the foundation, Amb. Saratu Abdul said that there was a need for the federal government to look into the empowerment of mothers, especially widows, across the communities.
Abdul, who was represented by Mr John Olugbemi, said: “Shamies Foundation decided to reach out to disadvantaged women in some of the areas in Abuja as part of our humanitarian gestures to commemorate the International Mothers Day.
“We are happy to impact the lives of the women rather than staying within the city centre to celebrate and send wishes across to them. We felt appropriate to show them, love, individually.”
Adding: “We have seen how most of these women are struggling economically and financially to fend for their families. So, we deemed it fit among ourselves to come to the Kabusa community to distribute food items, cash, and wrappers for them to feel the impact of the day.”
A widow and beneficiary of the humanitarian outreach, Mrs Martina Odo, expressed gratitude to the foundation after receiving her gifts.
She said: “We are calling on the government and individuals that are blessed by God to come to our aid, especially women because most of our husbands don’t have jobs; even the works they are doing are not well-paid jobs and there is no money to train the children.”
Another beneficiary, Mildred Tongkorah, stated that the foundation has done well to support them.
“We appreciate the foundation for the good work because this kind of gesture has never happened in this community before. May God continue to guide them and give them the strength and happiness they deserve.”
In her remarks, the Project Coordinator of Shamies Unusual Hearts Foundation, Mrs Ladi Ogbole, explained that the foundation aimed to support the poor and needy in rural communities.
She said: “We all know how hard we women are trying to build a home, because without the women, there would be no nation, and Nigeria is a place where we women strive to support one another,
Coming to Kabusa is not our first time, but coming back here, it seems like the situation is not encouraging at all.
“As you can see, the number of women keeps increasing, and the rate of hunger is increasing. As you can see, these are women behind the stage, struggling just to have a meal. It is something that every NGO in Nigeria should look at, especially rural areas like this.”