Firm gives back to community at Christmas, gifts food, others to widows in FCT

As part of its Corporate Social responsibility, (CSR), ITM Services Limited, a pan-African group of companies, has reached out to 100 windows in the Federal Capital Territory with gifts of food items and wrappers as support for the Christmas and New Year celebrations.

Country manager of the organization Olubukola Oyinlola-Anuwe, said across the 12 countries ITM operates from, it has as a core mandate of giving back to the community and that is why it has chosen the festive period to support widows amidst rising inflation with the attendant high cost of living.

She said every year, the company carries out its CSR but this year, it has chosen to focus on widows because they are part of the vulnerable in the society and the yuletide is one of the best seasons to share and give back to the community.

“This year we decided particularly to look out for the widows especially now that inflation has gone up and we wanted to ensure that those that benefited are widows that is why we got in touch with organisations, NGOs that already have these people in their data and can be verified.

So each of them is from an organization such as the Better life for Rural Women, Rock of Ages Foundation and others and we invited a hundred widows,” she said.

Oyinlola-Anuwe explained that ITM services is a company skilled in Human Resources, (HR), audit, consultancy, payroll services, business and staff management as well as recruitment and outsourcing among others.

One of the beneficiaries, Felicia Asongo, from the Rock of Ages widows, a small business owner who lost her husband for the past 21 years ago, expressed happiness over the items given to her by the company because “it is not easy to gather widows under the current economic condition and offer them a token so we pray that God will continue to empower and enrich them,” she said.

“When I lost my husband 21 years ago, I was left with nothing because he was sick and we used everything we had to pay for the treatment and at the end of the day, he died and I was left with nothing and with three children and that was how I struggled to do one thing or the other. I now make smoothies and sell them, she adds.

For Ugorji Chidinma, from the Merciful Heart Foundation, said the provision given to her and others is a timely intervention because things have not been easy for her and her family since the passing of her husband about two years ago.

“I really appreciate these people for remembering us and putting smiles on our faces because things are very hard,” she said.

In her speech, minister of Women’s Affairs, Pauline Tallen, said the welfare of vulnerable women and girls particularly widows, is of great importance to the ministry.

Represented by the Principal Communication Division Officer in the ministry, Ejuamah Enoch, Tallen said “Reaching out to widows and the vulnerable is a divine injunction. Women go through a lot ranging from emotional and psychological trauma, deprivation, harmful traditional practices and denial of their fundamental rights including sexual violence among others.