As part of its empowerment programme, a women group in the Bunyia community of Boki Local Government Area of Cross River State, has embarked on a project of planting turmeric. The purpose is for members to pull resources together and boost their incomes as individuals and group. The women group, with about 50 members, enjoys funding from Offer of Jobs and Opportunities for Women and Children Network (OJO-WACNET). The founder of the OJO-WACNET, Dr. Tony Wemton, who is an agricultural engineer, explained that the turmeric project was a stepping stone for harnessing the potentials of women, adding that the project aims to empower households in the communities, as large expanse of lands had been purchased and turmeric planted with the hope that it would yield a lot for the group.
He also said the move was the first step of empowerment for the community women and that plans were underway to organise free agricultural programmes and first aid training for local agriculture cooperative societies. The President, Boki Women of Cross River, under the auspices of Bayinyi Boki Worldwide, Mrs. Florence Odok, enjoined Irruan women to show interest in the development programmes organised for Boki women, just as the Public Relations Officer of Bayinyi Boki Worldwide, Ambassador Florence Kekong, hinted that the women were into other areas of community farming, to boost food supply in the state.
