BY RITA OYIBOKA

The newly inducted President of the Inner Wheel Club International, District 916, Nigeria, Effurun GRA, IWM Odijie Keonyenasoa, has unveiled plans to prioritise maternal and child healthcare, safe delivery, family planning and women’s economic empowerment during her 2026/2027 tenure.

Keonyenasoa disclosed this in a post- event interview after her formal induction as the club’s seventh president, held on Saturday, October 24, 2026, at the Joemarine Institute of Nautical Studies and Research, off Custom Barracks Road, Effurun, Warri, Delta State.

She said the club would partner with the Reproductive Health Unit of the Delta State Ministry of Health to take healthcare awareness campaigns to rural communities, particularly to educate women on the importance of routine antenatal care, child spacing, personal hygiene during pregnancy and the need to deliver under the supervision of qualified birth attendants.

According to her, the initiative would also educate women on how to access the state’s health insurance scheme, noting that financial constraints prevent some women from seeking medical attention at healthcare facilities.

The president said the club planned to provide delivery kits to expectant mothers as part of efforts to support safe childbirth. She explained that the initiative could involve identifying a primary healthcare centre and working with the relevant authorities to distribute the kits to women preparing for delivery.

On economic empowerment, Keonyenasoa said the club would organise skills acquisition programmes for women and young people, while men willing to participate would also be accommodated.

She listed soap-making, pastry production and other practical skills that could help participants establish small businesses and earn income.

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The training, she added, would incorporate basic financial management, including savings, to equip beneficiaries with the knowledge needed to manage their earnings and build sustainable livelihoods.

She stressed that women’s economic independence was essential to their ability to make decisions about their health and contribute meaningfully to their families and society.

“An empowered woman can contribute to society, can contribute to the home. And that will give you self-respect,” she said.

Keonyenasoa brings considerable professional and humanitarian experience to the position. She is a Principal Lecturer in the Department of Business Administration and Management at Delta State Polytechnic, Otefe-Oghara, where she also serves as Director of Technical, Vocational Education and Training and Coordinator of the Regular II Programme.

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She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Business Administration from Delta State University and Benson Idahosa University, respectively.

Beyond her academic career, she serves as Delta State Chapter Coordinator of the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) Nigeria, Secretary of the UN Women Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Coordination Mechanism in Delta State, and the state’s civil society organisation representative for the Association Against Child Sexual and Gender-Based Violence.