Tallen to induct chef Hilda into Nigerian women hall of fame

*Okonjo-Iweala, Muhammed, Opeke, others make list of outstanding women

Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, has promised to ensure that Chef Hilda baci who recently made headlines for spending 100 hours cooking her way into the Guinness World Book or records, will be inducted into the next edition of the Nigerian Women Hall of Fame.

Tallen made the promise at the National Center for Women Development, (NCWD), Induction of eight, First Nigerian Female Achievers into the Nigerian Women Hall of Fame for their outstanding performance in their professional fields.

Urging the inductees to mentor young women to sustain the tide of women development and participation, the minister tasked State Commissioners of Women Affairs to replicate the structure of the Nigerian women hall of fame in their various states to recognise and document the contributions of women at the subnational levels.

She said “The criteria for selection are first women, historic or living to achieve recognition in their field of endeavour or a lifetime of achievement in that field.

“As we recognise and pay tribute to women by women, I believe that many more women are out there whose works and contributions have not been documented, I therefore call state commissioners of women affairs to duplicate such structures, so that the feedback process would be established and activities decentralised”

Director General of the NCWD, Mrs, Asabe Vilita-Bashir explained that the women hall of fame features records of pre-colonial and contemporary Nigerian women who played leading roles in different aspects of the society.

Among the women inducted into the hall are Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, head of the World Trade Organisation, (WTO), Hajiya Aisha Muhammed, United Nations Deputy Secretary General, Dr. Eleanor Nwadinobi, President of the International Medical Women’s International Association and Funke Opeke.

Others who made the highly conservative list are Engineer Kemisola Bolarinwa, inventor of the first ever breast cancer detection brassiere and head of Women in Information and Communication Technology, (ICT), in Nigeria. Mrs. Kofo Akinkugbe, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SecureID Nigeria limited, a company recognised as a global leader in Africa.

Also the list are AIG Aishatu Abubakar, the first ever Nigerian female Monitor General and Princess Adejoke Adefulire, Senior Special Assistant to the President on SDGs.