Jobberman Nigeria, a foremost career development and recruitment solutions company in Nigeria, in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, successfully hosted a special career and business forum for Persons With Disabilities in Adamawa State. The event themed, Empowered to Achieve More, was designed to provide job seekers and business owners (existing and aspiring) with direction on how to advance in their growth pursuits.
Participants at the event raved on and on about the impact of the event in their plans going forward. Aminatu, an aspiring business owner with visual impairment, said she received counselling from the counsellors on how to go about her business set-up.
“The counsellor told me that I may need to get more training on business operations and also check with Jobberman to help me get loans from a bank like the FCMB loan they mentioned” she explained.
Another participant, a school teacher living with albinism, expressed his deep satisfaction at how much the panel session opened his eyes to the need for compassion in dealing with people who do not have disabilities and may be unpleasant in their exchanges with him.
“People always make fun of us and say that we cannot see anything and I used to get very angry but today I have learned to be patient and understanding with them, especially as a school teacher. I will be more patient with my students.”
One of the panellists, Ms Grace Dauda, a farmer and shoemaker, encouraged the attendees with her story.
“I used to crawl to my farm to plant and people would just look at me, some with pity, others with awe. I knew that I needed to show that I am only physically challenged and not completely helpless. That was the first step in getting people to even see my plight and help me. So, Persons With Disabilities should not hide or be shy. Nobody can help you if they don’t see you”
Her story created a palpable hope in the room that the event’s objectives are indeed achievable for Persons With Disabilities.
In her welcome speech, the Senior Consultant, the Strategy team, Jobberman Nigeria, Oladoyin Kolawole, iterated the organisation’s commitment to providing the necessary all-encompassing support for career and business advancement to jobseekers and business owners, especially, Persons With Disabilities in marginalised places.
“The Mastercard Foundation in partnership with Jobberman Nigeria is committed to giving not just a voice to marginalised persons such as women and Persons With Disabilities, we are also putting measures in place to create opportunities for them to dream freely and achieve those dreams, whether in a career path or in an entrepreneurial pursuit. We want them to be able to hold their own regardless of the obstacles in their paths and this event is one of the many ways we are helping them win.”
The special career and business forum featured a comprehensive programme including a riveting panel session where the panellists shared real-life analogies, examples and anecdotes for not just surviving as a Person With Disability but thriving and forging on with the tools at one’s disposal. The session was followed by a career and business counselling session where participants had the chance to ask questions about their particular situations, and plans.
The transformative impact of the events was echoed in the feedback from several participants during the feedback session. A young man with a hearing impairment said the event was the first time he felt heard because nobody usually paid attention to Persons With Disabilities like him. Another participant said they were very happy to be among their kind and to repeatedly hear that they should be bold. Others gushed about the counselling session and how great it felt to be able to speak to someone about their dreams. A young woman said she didn’t know how to prepare for an interview prior to the Forum but had learnt to be there on time, not loiter about, come with a detailed CV and speak boldly.
The Adamawa Forum for Persons With Disabilities reiterated Jobberman’s position as a committed agent of positive change in the world of work, transforming upcoming and established professionals in their respective career journeys. The event was a testament to the organisation’s mission to empower Persons With Disabilities with skills and opportunities for growth in both employment and entrepreneurial endeavours.
