By Mustapha Salisu
The Bridge Connect Africa Initiative’s Women Against Violence Empowered Through Sustainability (WAVES) Phase II project has continued its drive to dismantle the cycle of gender-based violence (GBV) in Kano State through economic empowerment and climate-smart agriculture.
The initiative, supported by the French Embassy Fund for Civil Society Organizations, has over the past seven months trained 60 women from nine local government areas, including Gwale, Tarauni, Kumbotso, Rimin Gado, Dawakin Kudu, Dawakin Tofa, Tofa, Bichi, and Garko.
Speaking during the final capacity-building session held at the Prestige Hall, Outside Innovation Lab on Monday, Rukayya Abdulhadi, the Program Associate for WAVES, said the project, launched in June 2025 was designed to help women break free from cycles of violence by equipping them with sustainable livelihoods.
“We trained women from rural areas where GBV is most prevalent. Through climate-smart agriculture, we thought them to cultivate and harvest crops like cucumber and okra. After the training, they returned to their communities to step down the knowledge, helping others gain the same empowerment” Rukayya explained.
According to her, the session focused on linking the beneficiaries with financial institutions, teaching them how to register businesses, and access loans and grants. Rukayya said this marks the final stage of the second phase, which will culminate in a grand “showcase” event scheduled for April 1, 2026.
“This phase focuses on sustainability and transition ensuring these women can manage their enterprises independently. We’ve trained them on business development, branding, and packaging, and even held a policy dialogue with the Kano State Ministry of Women Affairs, which led to the launch of the GBV Committee in Kano” she noted.
Abdulhadi revealed that the WAVES II project builds on the success of its first phase, which trained 50 women under funding from the Canadian Embassy in Nigeria. The new phase introduced additional components like policy advocacy and institutional partnerships to ensure long-term impact.
“The program now manages 160 women through cluster systems 20 per group to sustain mentorship and business growth” She added.
Delivering her message to the participants, Rukayya urged women to embrace independence and leadership within their communities.
She also appealed to the government to domesticate the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act to strengthen legal protection for women across Kano State.
Hadiza Jibrin, who spoke on behalf of the participants, commended the managers of the WAVES Phase II project for equipping them with knowledge in climate-smart agriculture and connecting them with financial institutions to have access to loans and grants
She pledged, on behalf of the other beneficiaries, to sustain the knowledge gained by continuously stepping it down to other women in their respective communities.
