The Justice Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), established by the Catholic Church, has spent N3.9 million to empower vulnerable women, caregivers and provide social infrastructure in Nasarawa Local Government Area of Nasarawa state.
The Coordinator of the organisation in the Catholic Diocese of Lafia, Rev. Fr. Matthew Ofoku, disclosed this to newsmen on Saturday at the Nasarawa Local Government Area secretariat.
The intervention was in collaboration with the Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN).
Ofoku said the commission had empowered 177 women and caregivers in the area with N10,000 cash each , in order to improve their standard of living.
He added that the organisation also had donated 410 chairs to some primary and secondary schools in the state to improve the standard of education in the area.
“We have also embarked on renovation of classrooms and toilet facilities.
“This is to improve the standard of living of women, that of their family members and their health status,’’ he said.
Ofoku said the gesture was part of the organisation’s deliberate humanitarian responsibility to improve on the lives of women as well as the standard of education, for societal development.
According to him, the Catholic Diocese of Lafia always extends its responsibility beyond spiritual reawakening, hence, the need to initiate people-oriented programmes that would put smiles on the faces of the vulnerable, irrespective of religious affiliations.
The coordinator who also described education as the route to escape from poverty, added that any educated person could move to places beyond his or her local environment.
He said that was why social infrastructure in education and the society should be put in place by both the government and corporate organisations.
Ofoku reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to building projects and programmes that would have direct bearing on the lives of Nigerians, especially, vulnerable women and children.
The clergy called on Nigerians to live exemplary lives worthy of emulation in the interest of peace and development.
Women from Ara, Gunki, Kurudu, Laminga, Loko, Mararaba Udege, Marmara, Ogapa, Onda, Tammah, Udege kasa and Udege Mbeki communities benefitted from the empowerment.
The schools that benefited from the gesture include: the Government Secondary School (GSS), Mararaba Udege, GSS Marmara, GSS Kurudu and Tammah Primary School and LGEA Tulluwa.
Others are the Central Primary School in Nasarawa, LGEA Eyenu, LGEA Marmara and Kofara Kudu Primary School.
