Nigerians have been urged to speak well of their country. Wife of the President and Founder, Future Assured Programme, Dr. Mrs. Aisha Muhammadu Buhari made the call during the 2018 Episcopal Harvest of the Anglican Communion at the Cathedral of Holy Trinity, Gwagwalada, Abuja, on Saturday, 20^thOctober, 2018.

Mrs. Buhari, who was honoured with Deborah Award, was represented by Mrs. Grace Chamah, wife of the former military Governor of Katsina and Kebbi states.

Mrs. Buhari observed that “there is power in the spoken word, the power of life and death, Nigerians should therefore make positive declarations about their country.” She enjoined them to pray for the nation’s leaders, to enable them make the right decisions for the betterment of our country. “As prayers heal the land, so do bad declarations bring hardship” she said, imploring Nigerians to embrace peace so that stability and prosperity will prevail.

She thanked the Diocese for recognizing her with the award saying as a mother of the nation, she has a duty to impart her humanity on those that are less fortunate with her humanitarian activities.

Speaking earlier, the Right Rev. Moses Bukpe Tabwaye, Bishop of the Gwagwalada Diocese and host of the event, said Mrs. Buhari has impacted in many areas that affect the less privileged, especially women and children and that her hands of mercy have reached all Nigerians, irrespective of faith or ethnicity. He urged her to continue the good work she is doing.

He commended Mrs. Buhari and hoped other well-meaning Nigerians will take a cue from her.

Deborah Award is named after the prophetess Deborah, who is noted for her courage, wisdom and leadership.

Wife the President, Dr. Mrs. Aisha Muhammadu Buhari departs Sunday to New York for the 73^rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly. She will be travelling alongside President Muhammadu Buhari.

While in New York, Mrs. Buhari will address the General Assembly’s High Level Meeting on Tuberculosis, where she will speak to issues of increased political commitment, funding and robust partnerships on the 26^thSeptember, 2018. The event will be preceded on the 25^th September by a Gala Dinner organized to celebrate Global TB Champions, Celebrities and TB Survivors, where Mrs. Buhari is billed to present inspiring remarks.

The 21^st Summit of Organization of African First Ladies against AIDS (OAFLA) General Assembly which could not hold at Mauretania earlier in the year will hold during UNGA. Mrs. Buhari will address the session which is also centered on Tuberculosis.

On the Sidelines of OAFLA, Mrs. Buhari will attend a number of high level events including a Stakeholders Meeting on Breast and Cervical Cancers in Africa and another on HIV as well as a strategic planning workshop for First Ladies and their Technical Advisers.

It would be recalled that Mrs. Buhari was appointed Global TB Champion by the Stop TB Partnership and Special Ambassador for the elimination of mother to child transmission of HIV by Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) in recognition of her work in health advocacy.

Wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Muhammadu Buhari has called on political leaders in Nigeria, especially those closer to the people, to do more in the lives of ordinary Nigerians whose requirements are basic amenities like potable water, healthcare and education. She said provision of these amenities will guarantee an easy reelection for any official.

She was speaking during a courtesy visit by officials of Project 4 + 4 Buhari/Osinbajo for 2019 on Thursday 13^th September, 2018.

Mrs. Buhari commended the Pro-Buhari group for its campaign for the reelection of President Buhari’s administration, calling on them to continue to propagate the manifesto of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which promises to improve the lives of Nigerians, as well as publicize what the party has achieved so far.

She expressed happiness that millions of Nigerians have directly benefitted from various components of the Social Investment Programme of government, citing Npower, TraderMoni and cash transfer as visible successes. She therefore called for more publicity on these positive and beneficial projects which are direct dividends of democracy.

“Our party has done creditably well despite numerous challenges” she said, stating that apart from starting fresh human and infrastructural developmental projects, our great party is also completing projects abandoned by former governments; such projects will not only secure more jobs for the people, they will also lead to more development.

She called on the group to continue sensitizing both leaders and followers on the advantages of voting APC.

Earlier, the National Coordinator of the group, Comrade Garba Bello, said President Buhari has promised four years of change, which he has accomplished with numerous landmark projects; and therefore requires the next four years to consolidate these achievements.

Comrade Bello said the group targets 35 – 40 million Nigerians for sensitization through various channels, saying that most Nigerians need to be reached with facts and figures on the change that has been achieved since 2015. He said they will employ digital media, town halls, publications and other direct methods to ensure that Nigerian electorate make the right choice in 2019.

Members of the group include Chief Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu Jr. Hajiya Binta Muazu, and Hon. Jubril Maigari.

Wife of the President, Dr. Mrs. Aisha Muhammadu Buhari has called for the scale up of adolescent health information, stating that it is necessary for successful AIDS control and prevention. She made the call at the China/Africa AIDS Prevention and Control Conference, which was organized by the First Lady of the Peoples’ Republic of China, Professor Peng Liyuan on the Sidelines of the Forum of China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, China on 4^thSeptember, 2018.

Mrs. Buhari gave the example of Nigeria, which has studied the adolescent and young people’s challenges and developed a National HIV strategy that targets this population with context specific interventions. She lamented the high number of HIV patients in Nigeria and other African countries.

In her remarks, First Lady of the People’s Republic of China, Professor Peng Liyuan, said the conference is another step forward in China – Africa relations, which creates historic opportunities for health cooperation, and called on African countries to work with China in the fight against AIDS, deepen cooperation and continue to contribute to the health and well-being of their peoples.

Professor Liyuan promised that starting from 2019, China will work with African countries and relevant international organizations on a 3 – year program for adolescent preventive and community health programs to raise awareness and help countries move towards the Sustainable Development Goal of ending HIV/AIDS by 2030.

She commended African countries for their massive and effective campaigns which have seen a rise in the number of patients receiving Anti-Retroviral treatment, lower death rates, and declining number of children with HIV/AIDS.

“Many of you made tremendous effort to make this happen. I have nothing but admiration and respect for all of you.” She said to the first ladies.

The event was attended by first Ladies from 36 countries and the Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, Michel Sidibe.

Founder Future Assured Mrs. Aisha Buhari has charged the judiciary has been charged to review penalties associated

with abuse in Nigeria in order to adequately address the violation of the
fundamental human rights of victims of abuse. The charge was made by Wife of
the President, Mrs. Aisha Muhammadu Buhari at the workshop on war on abuse,
organized by Future Assured at the State House Conference Centre on Saturday,
16^th December, 2017.

Mrs. Buhari was making reference to the 6 month old baby that
was raped in Kano last year and the perpetrator getting off with a N10, 000
fine.

She also made reference to recent occurrences of child abuse,
human trafficking, child marriage, cyber bullying, domestic violence and abuse
of the elderly, saying they remain a major cause of concern despite legislative
measures.

Mrs. Buhari harped on the need to educate people and raise
necessary awareness on preventive measures and the need for immediate reporting
of incidences to law enforcement agencies to take appropriate action. “This
workshop,” She said, “will proffer workable solutions to addressing this social
problem.”

She called on victims to speak out and let the law take its
course, stressing that there should be no excuse for any form of abuse.

“If one child or adult is protected as a result of this
workshop, it would be well worth it.” She added.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, who graced the occasion, spoke
on the need to keep the limelight on issues of abuse, citing issues of baby
factories, oppressive widowhood practices, conscription of children as beggars,
suicide bombers and female genital mutilation.

He said cases of abuse are preventable and urged that the risk
factors be identified and dealt with. He also spoke on the need to counsel boys
on how to treat women with equality and dignity.

Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami,
delivering his keynote address, said the workshop was timely as it addresses
issues that have pervaded the news, making reference to the victims of illegal
migration, trafficking and slavery, many of whom have died due to wrong
information. He said the legal framework guiding issues of abuse in Nigeria are
robust and stressed the need for collaborative effort to check the trend.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustafa,
delivering the speech of the President, said Future Assured has done very well
as an NGO and called other NGOs to emulate Future Assured.

Goodwill messages were delivered by the Minister of Interior,
representatives of the Senate President and Inspector-General of Police, UNICEF,
National Council of Women Societies, Nigerian Bar Association, National Orientation
Agency and UN Women.

The workshop was attended by wives of governors, state chief
judges, attorneys-general, NGOs, Civil Society Groups, and development
institutions.

The trail of the future assured empowerment programme for women and youth
across the country, Founder Future Assured, Mrs. Aisha Muhammadu Buhari was at
Ilorin to celebrate the graduation of 1100 women and youths trained in skills
acquisition. The event held on Wednesday 20^th December, 2017.

Delivering her remarks at the occasion, Mrs. Buhari
congratulated the beneficiaries, saying the objective of this programme is to
uplift the living standards of the vulnerable population, which mostly comprise
of women and youth.

“These trainings are ongoing in many states and concluded in
many others. One experience we have taken away is that women and youth are
interested in acquiring these skills. So the programme compliments government’s
effort in this regard.”

She called on the graduands to establish businesses that will
enable them to take care of their children, train and guide them to take
control of their lives.

She thanked the state governor for supporting the programme by
providing loans to the best graduants and two hectares of farmland especially
for those of them into farming. She thanked the wife of the governor for
feeding graduates throughout the duration of the programme.

The beneficiaries learnt tie and dye, pastries, make up, bead
and jewelry making, vegetable farming, fashion design, plumbing and electrical
services.

Earlier, the governor of Kwara state state, Alhaji abdulfatah
Ahmed, in his address had thanked Mrs. Buhari for choosing Kwara among
beneficiary states of her empowerment project.

“This initiative connects with our commitment to human capital
development, through functional education, entrepreneurship and access to
affordable healthcare, as a pathway out of poverty and sustainable livelihood.”
Said the Governor.

He added that vocational skill acquisition contributes
immensely to building a virile economy given the importance of entrepreneurship
and the informal sector to economic development.

These skills, he said, also provide a reliable antidote to the
malaise of youth unemployment and poverty, but as neither government nor the
private sector can conveniently absorb our youths, “we need to encourage more
initiatives such as this that empower youths and women with the skills,
education and funds necessary for their economic empowerment.”

Wife of the governor of Kwara state, Mrs. Omolewa Ahmed in her
welcome address said Future Assured is transforming the lives of youth and
womenfolk who form the greater percentage of the unemployed in our nation. Acquisition
of vocational skills at the moment stands to be the main sustainable means to
tackle the social burden of mass unemployment.

An exhibition of services and products developed by the
graduands was inspected by Mrs. Buhari, who was accompanied by wife of the
Senate President, Mrs. Toyin Saraki, wife of the Speaker of the House, Mrs.
Gimbiya Dogara and Mrs. Pauline Tallen, former Deputy Governor of Plateau
State.

Another batch of 500 youths have graduated from Future Assured
Empowerment programme in Kano. They were issued certificates of completion
today at a ceremony attended by wife of the President and Founder, Future
Assured, Mrs. Aisha Muhammadu Buhari.

Th

e youths received training in paint making, leather work,
barbing and manicure, rabbitry and fishery.

Speaking at the occasion, Mrs. Buhari charged the graduands to
utilize the skills they have acquired to improve their lives and build
businesses that will not only engage them but enable them to employ others. She
called on philanthropic Nigerians to support them with start-up funds.

Speaking earlier, wife of the Governor of Kano state, Dr.
Hafsat Ganduje, expressed appreciation to Mrs. Buhari for the interest she and
the President have shown in Kano state, saying that 12 days after the working
visit by the President, his wife too had come to add value to the people of
Kano. She recalled the 2200 women that received training a few months ago from
Future Assured, saying that for most of them, their Future is indeed now
assured.

A religious cleric and Chairman of the Hisbah Board, Mallam
Aminu Daurawa spoke on the opportunity that the graduands were given and called
on them not to allow it to slip by, saying many youths would be grateful to
receive such training and would utilize it to their benefit. He drew attention
to the rampant cases of drug abuse among young people, saying skills training
programmes like these would engage such youths meaningfully. He said with opportunities
like these, even cases of crime would drop.

The cleric urged that the training be extended to religious
scholars and civil servants.

Highlight of the event was an exhibition of the handiwork of
the graduants, which the wife of the President inspected.

Earlier in the day, Mrs. Buhari commissioned a Future Assured
Women and Youth Empowerment Center, where trainings like the one just completed
will subsequently be held in the state.

She also paid a condolence visit to the family of the late
Danmasanin Kano, Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Sule, who died recently.