An NGO, Community Assistance and Relief (CARES) Foundation, has sensitised market women and food vendors in Kogi on food and personal hygienes as part of the preventive measures against the Coronavirus pandemic.
The foundation also distributed free packets of Maggi, face masks and performed free voluntary Covid-19 test.
The program was organised by CARES Foundation in collaboration with Maggi of Nestle Nig. Ltd, Kratos Integrated Concept Ltd, and supported by Kogi State Ministry of Health.
Speaking at the event in Lokoja, the Founder of the NGO, Mrs Bolanle Bola-Olorunsaiye, said the program, tagged: ”Covid-19: You, Your Health and Business”, was to sensitise market women, orphanage homes, people living with disability, restaurant owners and food vendors on Covid-19 health protocols.
According to her, the health protocols include: hand washing with running water, use of hand sanitisers, face masks, social distancing, keeping indoors, and maintaining a good food, personal and environmental hygienes.
Bola-Olorunsaiye, who was the former Kogi Commissioner for Women Affairs, urged the participants to keep to safety and preventive measures against the spread of the novel Coronavirus and other infectious diseases.
She highlighted the foundation’s various intervention programmes, which had helped communities, women, children, youths, pupils, widows and the vulnerables in many areas.
The interventions include: provisions of two motorised boreholes and water wells for communities, scholarship for five students in higher institution, youth and women empowerment, distribution of food items, among others.
A Guest Speaker, Mrs Ohunene Etudaiye, Kogi State Influencer for Maggi Nig., enjoined participants to imbibe a hygienic lifestyle for healthy living, urging them to always maintain good hygiene in their homes and restaurants.
”Your cooking environment must be very clean, you must maintain a personal hygiene; when you are clean you naturally attract people”, Etudaiye advised.
On his part, Kogi Commissioner for Health, Dr Saka Audu, who was represented by Dr Austin Ojotule, the State Epidemiologist, said women remained very important in the fight against the spread Covid-19.
He, therefore, advised participants to keep to regular hand washing, maintain physical distancing and use of face masks, adding that, ”if you are sick stay at home”.
Other dignitaries at the event were: Secretary to Kogi State Government (SSG), Dr Afolashade Ayoade, Kogi Commissioner for Women Affairs, Chairman People Living with Disability, Mr Arome Ibrahim, among others.
