{"id":4528,"date":"2015-04-15T16:10:10","date_gmt":"2015-04-15T16:10:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.africlub.net\/awdf\/?p=4528"},"modified":"2015-08-25T14:59:58","modified_gmt":"2015-08-25T14:59:58","slug":"an-address-by-ghanas-minister-of-gender-children-and-social-protection-at-awdfs-candlelight-vigil-on-the-1st-anniversary-of-chibok-girls-abduction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/awdf.org\/OldSite\/an-address-by-ghanas-minister-of-gender-children-and-social-protection-at-awdfs-candlelight-vigil-on-the-1st-anniversary-of-chibok-girls-abduction\/","title":{"rendered":"An Address by Ghana’s Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection at AWDF’s candlelight vigil on the 1st anniversary of Chibok Girls’ Abduction"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tuesday, April 14th 2015 marked the first anniversary of the abduction of the over 200 girls from Chibok in Northern Nigeria. To commemorate the occasion, AWDF,\u00a0in conjunction with the University of Ghana’s Centre for Gender Studies and Advocacy (CEGENSA), organised\u00a0a peaceful candlelight vigil where\u00a0Ghana\u2019s Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, the Honourable Nana Oye Lithur, delivered a powerful and moving address, affirming\u00a0Ghana’s solidarity with the Nigerian people and called for the safe return of the girls:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Members of the Diplomatic Community<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Chief Executive Officer, the African Women\u2019s Development Fund (AWDF), Theo Sowa<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Representatives from AWDF and CEGENSA<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Students<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Ladies and Gentlemen<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I thank you for inviting me to this solemn ceremony. Exactly a year ago, more than 230 girls, with hope for a better future were in school at Chibok in Northern Nigeria. They knew that they would finish secondary school and continue to pursue their dreams of an accomplished educated life that they could pass on to their children\u2019s children. They knew that education was the sure way to working in any of their country\u2019s corporate institutions or creating their own businesses to improve the economic conditions of their families. They had parents who were regularly expectant of the results from their investment in their children\u2019s education.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

But then all these dreams came to an abrupt end. The world woke up to the rude shock of the abduction of these girls by militant group Boko Haram. The shock of this marauding swoop by Boko Haram resulted in demonstrations and calls from peoples of all walks of life worldwide for the return of the girls. Nigerian campaigners used social media, particularly Twitter, to raise awareness about the kidnapping. The #bringbackourgirls<\/strong> online campaign caught on well with notable personalities like First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama and Democratic Presidential nominee hopeful Hillary Clinton as well as a number of prominent celebrities, joining it.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Ladies and Gentlemen, this heinous crime attracted the attention of many countries, which offered their assistance to Nigeria for the girls\u2019 return or rescue:<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n