The Executive Director of ANIKA Women’s Association in the Western Equatoria State capital Yambio has called on womenfolk to join business activities rather than depending on their husbands for sustenance.
The call came after ANIKA Women’s Association graduated 30 women and 10 young men who spent four months learning cosmetics and modern beekeeping through funding from the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj at the weekend, Yabang Emilia Gibson Hosea, the Executive Director of ANIKA, said the association which was formed in 2016 has trained more than 200 individuals, especially women, in Yambio and Nzara on cosmetic production and beekeeping who are now doing business.
“We train the women in making body lotions, soap, and shampoos and train the men in modern beekeeping. We train people in conflict mitigation, business skills, and record keeping. The reason is that since we have trained in making these products, they need business skills to manage their customers,” she explained. “Secondly, record keeping allows them to document their business to identify whether there is loss or gain. Finally, we give them conflict management skills so that when they go to their groups, in case of any conflict, they can manage it even at the family and society levels.”
“I wanted to tell my sister out there that a woman is the foundation of the household and should not be idle and wait for everything from their husbands but wake up and do something of our own with our hands,” Yabang counseled.
She said women should work hard and contribute to the running of their households and pay bills such as school fees because at times husbands are away.
“We should stop the norm that the husband is the provider. Women should do our small businesses and we should love ourselves and live in peace because I have realized that women always have problems when they are in a group,” she stated. “One of the challenges we face is that we do not have an office and are renting the current space. We started constructing our own office but ran out of money and it is stuck at the roofing level. We also have an interest in processing but have no facility. We have 220 members but have no space for even training and we are appealing for support to finish our structure and fence.”
Yabang lamented that they also lack transportation and find it difficult to move to far-flung payams and counties.