The Group Chief Executive, Oando Plc., Mr. Wale Tinubu has joined millions of others across the globe to celebrate International Day of the Girl Child today, October 11, 2023.
According the statement made available the oil and gas merchant wrote,”On International Day of the Girl Child, we celebrate the boundless potential of girls worldwide. I implore everyone to go beyond observing the day and pledge to empower the next generation of girls by providing them with the opportunities to thrive and foster a brighter, more inclusive future.
Amongst the many ways I support the girl child, I am most proud of Oando Foundation and our impact over the past 12 years. We have tailored interventions to ensure the rights of the girl child are protected by advocating for equality in access to quality education; in the process, positively impacting the lives of many young women.
Today, through the Adopt-A-School Initiative, Oando Foundation has mobilized and enrolled 21,687 out-of-school girls back to school, with a 72% transition rate into secondary education. Notably, girls account for 58% of the 1,153 Oando scholarship awardees.
I will continue to advocate for the girl child as investing in the girl child is investing in our common future’’
Many would will be aware that, Tinubu, is no doubt one of the champions of gender equality in Nigeria. While the African continent comes third after the United States and Europe, and first amongst other emerging regions in terms of women’s representation on boardrooms of top listed companies, some sectors are doing better than others. It was gathered that the billionaire businessman in the past had spoken in defense of women as well as the grudging refusal to empower women with leadership responsibilities and he is definitely walking the talking and leading the pack.
In what many observers have described as a paradigm shift, Tinubu’s leadership at Oando is currently seeing a surge in the number of women at its top echelon. As of today, 43 percent of the company’s workforce is female, compared to 22 percent across the industry. Of this, 33% of executive-level employees are female with the hope that its female representation on its board continues to grow.
