IN UNITY, WE DO MORE

The theme for this year's International Womens' Day is 'Be bold for change' and for me, this holds a lot of hope.

Women around the world are beginning to wake up to the realization that silence has not and will never help their cause. There are ongoing conversations around the globe about the plight of womenin the developing world, the challenge of inequality even in the developed world and, even the blanket of patriarchy that cuts across the continents.

These days, with the power of digital media, more women are connecting to each other, awareness is being daily created for victims of domestic violence, female genital mutilation, child-marriage, vesico vaginal fistula, rape, body - shaming and a whole lot more; and liberation is gradually taking over.

In Nigeria for instance, On Facebook alone, groups like Mamalette, Female in Nigeria, Greenlands Assistance Haven, Adorable Mums, Babes Redefined, ThyPrecious Jewels and so many others have sprung up within the last five years, these groups are greatly uniting women and giving many a platform to find their voice and make it heard. These groups (more like movements) have offered help to many, rescued domestic violence victims, provided help in cash and materials to indigent women, fought and won cases in court, provided shelter to helpless women and children and this is ongoing.

Women are rising up to the challenge. Women are no more confined to the kitchens (like it used to be). Women are today in the forefront as not just 'change agents' but 'change drivers'. The days where women took the backseat are fading fast. The call for gender equality in Nigeria, though gaining slow traction, is however a dream that we shall one day realise. And I believe same will happen across the globe, slowly but surely. \"Injustice to one woman anywhere is injustice to women everywhere!\"

Recently, a bill for gender equality having reached second reading stage at the National Assembly, was halted, but we are not giving up hope. Unlike in the days of our mothers where women were easily cowered into silence, a generation of unapologetic feminists is growing across our nation ( and inadvertently across the world) and I know that with the power of social media, we cannot be silenced anymore.

On WorldPulse and everywhere, women are waking up from the deep patriarchy -induced slumber that once enveloped them.

As we celebrate the 2017 International Women Day, I look forward to the #LogOnRiseUp trending across all platforms. I look forward to more conversations on the plight of women and how this little trickles will build an ocean of wealth that will impact women everywhere.

I may not have been to many parts of the world and I may never get to do so, but today I relate with women from India to Timbuktu, Cairo to CapeTown, Nairobi to Newport, China to Cincinnati, because women are rising up and finding their voices through the global digital movements like World Pulse, and together, we shall stand, long enough till the very last woman be free!

How to Get Involved

Join the World Pulse today by logging on to www.worldpulse.com. Let your voice be heard. If your story can wake up one woman from slumber, trust me, it can change our world.