—says women remain the ‘bedrock of our society’

PRESIDENT, Dr. Irfaan Ali has announced that a new, technology-driven initiative aimed at combatting violence against women will be launched in the coming days, as part of his administration’s ongoing commitment to women’s empowerment and safety.

Speaking at the third graduation ceremony of the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL), on Monday, President Ali highlighted the vital role women, particularly mothers, continue to play in shaping society, noting that the government is preparing to take bold new steps to support and protect them.
“In the coming days, I’ll be launching a new programme for women…We will be using technology to its fullest… that would help all of us to aggressively deal with violence against women,” President Ali said during his address.

While details of the initiative were not fully disclosed, the President signalled that it would be part of a broader technological response to one of the country’s most pressing social issues.
President Ali said that more than 70 per cent of GOAL scholarship recipients are women and called on the audience to celebrate this moment of empowerment.
“Put our hands together for the women here today, and I want all our women graduates to stand for a moment,” he said.
“It is almost the entire room. And I hope we capture this moment. When we speak about empowering women, when we speak about women getting their fair chance to shine and to excel, this is what it looks like. This is what

it feels like.”
He also described GOAL’s impact on women as a “powerful force” in helping them gain access to education, professional development, and economic independence.
“This programme has broken down barriers, barriers of distance, of cost, of time, and yes, even barriers of self-doubt…It has opened doors for those who were told, ‘you’re too old,’ or ‘you missed your chance,’ or ‘that is not for people like you.’ It has killed all of those narratives and introduced only one narrative: can we, do it? And your government is investing to ensure that you can do it,” the President said. “
The Head of State also paid tribute to the sacrifices women, especially mothers, make in pursuit of education and betterment.
“I saw it in my own mother. Waking up in the early morning hours to cook for her family before she leaves to go to school… getting home back after 10 in the night, doing her assignments. Mothers are the bedrock of our society,” the President said as he shared, reflecting on her years as a university student.
President Ali further reaffirmed the government’s commitment to ensuring that as women rise, families and entire communities rise with them.
“As you rise, your family rises with you. As you rise, your village rises with you. And as you rise, make no mistake, Guyana rises with you,” he declared.