By: Bashir Rabe Mani, Sokoto
The National President of the Medical and Health Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MHWUN), Dr. Kabiru Ado Sani Minjibir, has charged women in the health sector to actively claim leadership positions and advocate policies that guarantee dignity, safety, and equity in the workplace.
Minjibir gave the charge on Thursday at the North-West Zonal Women Workshop themed, “Rights, Justice, Action: Advancing Women in the Health Sector and Trade Union”, held at the MHWUN Sokoto State Council Secretariat.
Addressing participants, the MHWUN President said the progress of any health system and trade union remains incomplete when women, who form the majority of the workforce, are not fully seen, heard, and empowered
“Rights remind us that every woman health worker is entitled to dignity, safety, and fair treatment. Justice reminds us that equity is not a favour.
“And Action reminds us that neither rights nor justice materialise on their own — they must be pursued and won through the collective strength of our Union*,” he said.
Represented by Comrade Yusuf A. Kiyawa, the MHWUN Secretary-General, Dr Minjibir reaffirmed the commitment of the current national leadership to mainstreaming women in all union activities.
He further called for the full implementation of affirmative action to ensure women are proportionately represented in decision-making organs of both the service and the Union.
Dr Minjibir also advocated safe and dignified working conditions* including adequate maternity protections, breastfeeding facilities, and protection from workplace harassment.
The President also urged deliberate mentorship and capacity-building programmes to prepare more women for leadership roles.
Dr Minjibir urged women comrades to “attend meetings, contest for offices, speak up in congresses, and mentor younger colleagues,” adding that leadership is claimed through preparation and participation.
The National President also appealed to male members to see the advancement of women not as a contest, but as “an investment in the strength and completeness of our entire movement.”
Earlier in her goodwill message, the Zonal Coordinator of MHWUN National Women Committee, Comrade Asma’u Bala, described the workshop as a platform for empowerment, education, leadership development and collective action.
She noted that while women play vital roles in healthcare delivery, they still face challenges including workplace discrimination, violence, unequal opportunities, and underrepresentation in leadership.
She encouraged participants to actively engage, share experiences, and return to their states to step-down the knowledge gained.
The workshop drew women leaders and members of MHWUN from across the seven North-West states.
Dignitaries present included National Officers, State Chairmen and Secretaries, and the North-West Zonal Chairman, Comrade Husseini Hamisu Yanduna as well as Zonal Secretary, Comrade Sani Yusuf Saulawa-Katsina.
The event ended with a call for resolutions from the workshop to be translated into concrete action at facility, state, and national levels.
The participants were drawn from the North-Western States as well as Bauchi, from the North-East, with the Sokoto State MHWUN Council Chairman, Comrade Nasiru Yahaya and his executives in attendance.(Peoples Daily)
