INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY- CEO, BOARD MEMBER AND ALUMNA SHARE THEIR PERSPECTIVES

This year as we celebrate international women's day, we asked our CEO, Molade Adeniyi, a board member and an alumna to share what embracing equity means to them.

As expected, they all had their different thoughts, but there was common ground to be found in their submissions

WAVE CEO- Molade Adeniyi

Molade shared how WAVE as an organisation is championing equity;

"At WAVE, #EmbracingEquity remains a priority for us - both in our operations and within the organisation. We believe that equal opportunities aren't enough. The WAVE model advocates for a “competencies over credentials” hiring philosophy to stimulate positive change in employer attitudes so they can move away from using traditional credentials like academic degrees, work experience, and networks to evaluate candidates and to encourage their openness to hire youth with low-income backgrounds. This creates a level playing field, promoting a more inclusive hiring landscape and ensuring that our beneficiaries can compete for job opportunities that they have the competence for alongside other youth with academic degrees.

Our program also takes into consideration the peculiar needs of participants, especially women and we ensure that everyone gets the same access and the same quality of engagement regardless of their circumstances

Everyone has a part to play. We can all challenge gender stereotypes, call out discrimination, draw attention to bias, seek out inclusion, and step up and commit to embracing equity. Equality is the goal and equity is how we will get there."

Board Member, Eniola Harrison

Eniola emphasized the global effect of equity;

"Embracing equity means we ALL need to take deliberate action to foster a truly diverse and inclusive society that supports the economic, political, and social advancement of women. 

It means working towards creating a society where all genders have equal opportunities and rights. 

Gender equality is not just nice to have. Ensuring that 50% of the world's population has equal opportunities, access, and treatment is crucial for a future that is peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable. While progress has certainly been made over the years, there's been massive setbacks due to the Covid-19 pandemic and according to the UN tracker, the world is not on track to meet the SDG goals of gender equality by 2030.  

There is therefore an impetus to be even more daring in challenging and dismantling gender-based discrimination and stereotypes. Embracing gender equity involves acknowledging the ways in which these gender-based biases and inequalities manifest in various aspects of society, such as education, employment, healthcare, and politics.

Men and women must come together in business, civil society, community groups, government, and academia to address these inequalities by implementing policies and practices that promote equal access, representation, and empowerment for people of all genders".

Alumna- Olabisi Oyegoke

Olabisi spoke about her training experience;

"As a nursing mother of 3, it was not easy for me to wake up early to tend to my family and also arrive at the training venue on time, but I ensured to plan early and get everything done so that I can have a few minutes to rest before training started.

I understood that for success and progress to be achieved there would be challenges involved.
Staying focused on your goals and the learnings along the way are some of the ways to conquer those challenges.

The WAVE training boosted my confidence, it helped me to know how to present ideas and myself in any given situation.

I will start by defining both words in my own words and connecting them together;

Embrace means to accept others irrespective of their ethnicity, tribe, religion, race, and gender, and to value each other's opinions and views while equity lets us see that we are all one irrespective of our differences.

Ultimately, we should always strive to embrace equity."

How are you embracing equity in your own space?