…trains, empowers 35 women at Osogbo
Once again, Nike Davies-Okundaye, world acclaimed Nigerian textile artist and activist for women empowerment, has taken her passion for arts and empowerment a notch higher with her recent workshop.
For weeks, about 35 young women between 15-25 years old, were gathered at the Nike Art Gallery in Osogbo for a life-impacting working; free of charge.
The public-spirited Mama Nike, as she is fondly called, partnered with the United States of America embassy in Nigeria to organise the workshop, which is focused on empowering the all-female participants with the needed skills to be self-reliant.
The skills acquisition workshop focused on three areas of art and crafts; tie and dye, bead making and Aso-oke weaving, while creating an avenue to add and improve skills for the participants and facilitators alike.
Of course, as traditional to Nike Art Gallery in Osogbo, Lekki-Lagos, Abuja, and Ogidi-Ijumu, Mama Nike’s home town in Kogi State, there are passionate facilitators, who are trained by Mama Nike to carry on her legacy of empowering people, creating values and building a nation through the arts.
The Osogbo workshop paraded some of Mama Nike’s best hands, who drilled the participants well enough to stand on their own. They included; Ologe Femi, Lawal Saheed, Umeche Sefinat Agnes, Alhaja Aishat and Janet.
Speaking on the focus of the workshop, Mama Nike noted while the gallery does training for both genders, the latest one is focused on women because they are the home builders.
Ultimately, the workshop aims to build a positive home where women would be empowered to contribute immensely to the economic growth of the nation.
“The workshop in Osogbo is supported by the USA Embassy in Nigeria. It is aimed at developing the younger generation artists; especially women, empowering them and teaching them skills that can sustain a livelihood for them in the arts,” Mama Nike, while insisting that the skills are jobs on their own.
“I am training them in Adire Eleko, which is hand-painted with chicken feather and cassava paste; Adire Alabare , which is hand-painted with wax and natural vegetable dye.
“We are training them in bead making, the ones that people are using now as fashion accessories. The last one is a hand-woven women’s loom. It is one of the dying crafts. It is a skill acquisition for a better life”.
She appreciated the American Embassy for supporting the workshop. “We have four training workshops in Nigeria and the American Embassy has always been one of our big supporters,” she said.
However, after Oshogbo, the workshop will move to Lagos in January or February 2025 and will go beyond bead making, Aso-Oke weaving, Adire (tie and dye) and to train participants on how to package and sell their works, and mentorship as well.
Expressing her excitement at the acquisition of the empowerment skills at the workshop, Akande Priscilia Boluwatife, one of the participants, was grateful to have learnt many skills at no fee.
“I have been able to learn how to make different styles of tie and dye, batik using different techniques, bead making, ear rings, using Ankara for book cover and to make slippers. That has been very impactful,” she said.
Meanwhile, she continued her ongoing training at the workshop learning different techniques of making Aso-Oke.
“Thanks to Nike Art Gallery, the USA Embassy and the facilitators for offering me this great opportunity. With the skills I have acquired here, I will be able to make money and be self-reliant,” the grateful Boluwatife concluded.
In the same vein, Bada Omowunmi, another participant, shared her experience at the workshop and how impactful it has been.
She appreciated the organizers, but also requested that the workshop should continue for others to also benefit and set up something for themselves.
“This is offering me and every other participant, a great opportunity to be self-reliant. I appreciate Mama Nike and the US Embassy,” Omowunmi said.
In his assessment, Lawal Saheed, the workshop manager and one of the facilitators, was excited that the participants lived up to expectations with their passion to learn.
“I am the workshop manager and one of the instructors for Batik. I am happy for the workshop because of the huge cost of funding it, assemblage of materials and instructors, it is not easy,” he said.
“We started with 30 girls and they are happy to learn. It is free and all the materials were provided for them. Some of the instructors here did their industrial attachment here and returned after their school. They are happy here and are making a good living”.
He also appreciated Mama Nike for the opportunity to empower people to excel in life, especially young girls and women.
“There are over 150 people here at the Osogbo gallery, including the 30 girls, who were all engaged in the practical training and skills acquisition projects. That is a blessing to the Osogbo community,” Saheed concluded.
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