The Girls

INTRODUCTION
I sincerely appreciate your sacrifice of time and convenience to be a part of this documentation. Since 2011, 11th October has been set aside globally to celebrate and bring to the fore the importance of girls in national development and to highlight the barriers to their rights. We believe strongly that when girls are empowered and supported, everybody wins. While the women and children had a day to focus on their developmental needs, there was no such date set aside for the girls until 2011 , when the
United Nations adopted 11th October.
Before the year 2011, a group of women in Akwa lbom State had recognized this apparent gap in women development programmes, and in 1996 formed this unique group, Women in Total Girl Development (WIT-GIRL).
As a unique group, it is:
— established to provide platform for girls to learn and mature;
– a mentoring group, therefore members provide room for self-expression and constructive criticism;
– a platform to learn virtues by association;
– a group to identify and celebrate stars among girls;
– a forum for teaching contentment and appreciation;
– a platform to teach love and tolerance in preparation for market place interaction;
– a forum to teach self-respect and self-esteem devoid of arrogance;
– a platform to develop great women from simple-hearted girls who can positively impact the world.
The inert potentials in the girls must be identified and
nurtured, so we research into events, situations, issues and document worthy lives for our role models.
We adhere to the instructions of Mason that anyone who stops learning is old, whether this happens at the age of 20 or 80. On the contrary, anyone who keeps on learning not only remains young, but becomes consistently more valuable regardless of physical capacity.
So we organize seminars and workshops as our learning platforms. We read books not for examinations but for maturity for we have grown to have a better understanding of the concept “Maturity”.
My friend tells me it is not about age or physical
development but about relationship so we learn that
maturity is when someone:
– accepts other people the way they are and their level of maturity;
– understands that his/her ideas are not always the best and make room for superior arguments;
– learns to let go even if it hurts;
– gives one’s best for a relationship without expecting an -on- the —spot reward;
– stops working to prove how right and superior one is,
– works to improve oneself for his/her good and shun unhealthy competition with peers;
– is contented and satisfied with one’s life while working and aspiring for a better tomorrow;
– hurts you and you understand the intention and therefore hold your peace;
– understands that one cannot and should not always get what one wants every time;
– thinks highly of others and not only of oneself; loves others more and judges them less;
– is totally responsible for one’s actions;
– is capable of applying knowledge and wisdom in humility;
– sees one’s family members and friends as gifts from God;
– recognizes that one‘s presence on earth is by God’s design and gives in to the tutelage of the Almighty God; and
– appreciates the truth that it is a smart economy to invest on a girl’s education.
This resource material in our hands is one of the tools for giri-child empowerment. It is a one-hundred (100) page pocket-book presented in ten (10) inspirational chapters with simple language for easy comprehension of the youths.

We are indeed unique; we are building bridges for the
next generation.

Comfort Ekpo

Chairperson, Board of Trustees