Osun: IBEDC, USAID Organise Training For Women, Harp On Gender Equity To Increase Workplace Productivity

In a bid to create diverse opportunities and eliminating all forms of discrimination in the workplace for all staff; Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), has organized a gender initiative programme for women to fulfill their true potential.

Speaking the event, held in Osogbo, Osun state Capital, Engr. Adeniyi Adeleke, Regional Head IBEDC for Osun urged women to embrace careers in the energy sector to break the cultural norms and close the female gender gap.

Adeleke said that the conference was geared towards the promotion of gender equality and at the same time ensure that our women have the sense of belonging within the entity to do better.

According to him, part of the IBEDC
efforts was to ensure that ladies and women within the organisation are encouraged and empowered to give their best in different careers.

“Also, opportunities are bond for women to move from one section within the organisation to another as it sooth their development in the job.

“IBEDC is committed to creating a diverse environment and ensuring equal opportunities, fairness of treatment, dignity, work-life balance and eliminating all forms of discrimination in the workplace for all staff and job applicants.

“For instance in IBEDC, there is a strong gender equality statement and that we will continue to keep.

“So gender equality is really about bringing the two sex together to focus and build partnerships to ensure we flourish as a nation and companies. To be highly competitive, competent and thrive as a nation we would need to engage all possible talents, men and women, alike.

Also speaking, the Head, Branding and Corporate Communication for IBEDC, Angela Olanrewaju, said the conference is organised to provide unique opportunities for the female gender on engagement and career opportunities.

Olanrewaju said that the IBEDC entered partnership with USAID on gender equality so as to ensure they have strong multifaceted and diverse workforce.

She said: “This is about empowering women both within IBEDC and outside IBEDC. We enter the partnership with USAID in 2015 on gender equality to make sure that we have strong multifaceted and diverse workforce and that’s what we have been doing.

“We want our women to be empowered, to have the ambition, to have the know how and every skilled required for them to be the best.

“The conference is geared towards making our women have the necessary skills, the motivation, the knowledge they require to make their mark in their career.

“This edition of the DISCO for Women is themed breaking the glass ceiling. It is aimed at creating opportunities for women who have broken the barriers in their careers to helping younger women find their way, especially in male-dominated professions.”

In her lecture, Ayopeju Njudiaka, the Chief Executive Officer, Nurture House Consulting has underscored the Importance of gender equality to increasing productivity in the workplace.

She said: “The focus is that women should not be limited when they talk about leadership and for this particular program, the power sector is very male dominated but we are saying that one of the reasons is not because women are being discriminated against but because they haven’t even empowered themselves.

“So we are saying instead of sitting and thinking that in this industry we cannot go past somewhere, which is the mindset, we are saying that no, empower yourself and we are sure that you will get to the place you are supposed to get to and that’s what this “Breaking The Glass Ceiling” is all about.

“So we shared a lot about how they can make progress on their careers and how they can get to the peak of their career.

“So, the first thing is really the mindset, if you believe you can do something, you will do it. so a woman needs to step up, the company has put in so many things.

“IBEDC is putting in so many things to support women. They gave them mentors, they have coaches, the platform itself is there so if they don’t step out then nobody is going to push them out.

“They should know if they want to grow. The world has gone technological so they just must take that bold step.”