I see no reason why a woman cannot succeed me - Lafarge CEO
I see no reason why a woman cannot succeed me - Lafarge CEO
The Chief Executive Officer of Lafarge Africa, Mr. Michel Puchercos, says he sees no reason why a woman should not take over from him after his tenure as the company’s CEO.
The CEO made the comment while rousing support for women at the 2018 edition of the International Women’s Day event held at Park Inn by Radisson, Kuto Abeokuta on Thursday.Delivering the welcome address at the event, Purchercos urged everyone to join forces with women, saying the time is right to raise the bar to achieve more and do more.
“This year, the theme #PressForProgress encompasses the push that every woman needs to enable her succeed. It is a strong call to motivate and unite friends, colleagues and communities to think, act and be gender inclusive,” Puchercos said.
“As a woman, in the world today, with all the opportunities that exist, you are encouraged to never give up. You are encouraged to continue to press and push to achieve the progress and outcomes you desire.”He noted that Lafarge Africa Plc is already taking the lead to close the gender gap with its commitment to gender inclusion and parity.
“Lafarge Africa Plc has over 33 percent women representation in the Executive management and Board. While this is impressive, I believe strongly that we could do better,” he said.
“We are an equal opportunity employer. There is absolutely no gender based limitation to career growth and development in Lafarge. As CEO of Lafarge Africa Plc I see no reason why a woman cannot succeed me. It's all in your hands.”
Speaking to the theme: Press for Progress: How women globally are emboldened to speak up at the event, the Director, Communications, Public Affairs and Sustainable Development, Lafarge Africa, Mrs. Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, reminded the audience about great women in the past such as, Olufunmilayo Ransome Kuti, Senator Franka Afegbua among others who made great sacrifices for the freedom of not just women but entire generations.
“In the last three decades, many nations around the world have seen significant increase in the number of women involved in government and decision-making, especially at the parliamentary level. Within this period women holding legislative positions in Nigeria leaped from 0 to 6; in South Africa it grew from three to 32; for the United Arab Emirates it grew from 0 to 23; the United States saw its number of female lawmakers grow from seven to 19, and in the United Kingdom the leap was from 6 to 32. As of October 2017 there were 12 women serving as Heads of respective governments around the world. These are reassuring statistics which certainly encourage us to continue to press for progress,” she said.Also present at the event were veteran TV personality, and Editor-in-Chief of Today’s Woman magazine, Adesuwa Oyenokwe and Human Resources and Organisation Director, Lafarge Africa, Mrs. Fidelia Osime.
Six out of 18 of Lafarge Africa’s board members and five out of 15 of its leadership team are women. Women represent 10 of the company’s employee population. Last year Lafarge Africa collaborated with Access Bank and Unilever to launch Women in Manufacturing in Africa (WiM Africa) with the mission to identify, influence and proffer solutions for growth and inclusivity of women across Africa’s manufacturing sector.
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