Miracle Nwankwo
Most Rural women are known for household farming and trading to support the home while their husbands focus on lucrative crops, or migrate as seasonal or permanent workers. Asides being uneducated, local or rural women are reliable hands for viable roles when training and sensitization is in view.
This article is a call to governments, international organizations and NGOs on the need and benefits of introducing volunteering opportunities to local women especially in developing regions. The importance of this, is in its benefits and the impact it has on the women. If gender equality is a priority to all international organizations and government authorities, then this should be considered as one of the ways to achieving equality.
Volunteering, has been a modern day system of doing something that aims to benefit the environment or someone who is not closely related to you without being paid. The benefits that accrues volunteering is enormous and can change a person’s life for the better.
Volunteering is providing support and help to individuals in need and vulnerable conditions. It goes a long in helping people(volunteers) connect, learn new skills, develop their career, and live a happier and healthier life.
Speaking of health and happiness, volunteering is a way of philanthropy which also has vital benefits to the mind and body as such; protecting mental and physical health, reducing stress, combating depression, helping one to stay mentally stimulated, and providing a sense of purpose. Giving can improve one’s happiness, and volunteering is a simple means of giving that does not require a long-term commitment or take a huge amount of money from your bank account, yet it gives a sense of fulfilment and satisfaction.
In the light of this, getting local women involved in volunteering is a good idea to women’s development and gender equality. Therefore, here are three benefits of volunteering to the local woman.
Volunteering helps the local woman to connect and interact with her society:
In terms of socializing, rural women are left behind, they live a stereotypic lifestyle which is not good for the mind. Rural women know little or nothing about what happens around the world so they can hardly promote the course of women. This is why in most politically corrupt nations they voluntarily sell their votes to wrong leaders who at the end rule against them. Volunteering is a way of exposure for the local-woman to get involved and interact with her society. It can help her connect with her community and make it a better place.
Volunteering involves shared activities and team work, which help the local-woman to meet people, make new friends and commit to the society.
Volunteering boosts the local woman’s mental and physical health.
In Considering volunteering, the benefits it adds to both the mind and the body cannot be downplayed. If we all attest that health is wealth, then we should fight for the mental wellness of every local woman in the society.
Having to connect, interact and work with people has a profound effect on our psychological well-being, and this is an opportunity that volunteering provides. Volunteering thwart the effects of stress, anger, and anxiety. It combats depression and can keep one happy and fulfilled. It also boosts self-confidence. Thus, the need to get the local woman involved.
Volunteering a way to induce fun and fulfillment into a local woman’s life
With the high rate of depression and suicidal, thinking volunteering for the local woman is being proactive. Although cases of depression and suicide is not common among the rural settlers yet the spread is ravaging which means that the rural settlers are not safe. There are no cast on stone reasons to why people fall into depression and commit suicide but there are ways to combat them from being depressed. One of such ways is when then are involved in fulfilling and fun-filled activities like volunteering.
Volunteering is a possible and convenient way of exploring and searching out one’s passion. For women in the rural areas who are not conversant with what their passions are, doing volunteer work can help find their areas of interest and passion. If they get involved in volunteer jobs, which is an escape from the day-to-day routine of farming or selling produce, taking care of home chores or family commitments, you will find that they will become motivated, energized and more proactive in those things that they have been accustomed to doing which is an advantage to them, their families and the society at large.
Therefore, if we love the local woman we must fight for their mental and physical wellness.
