The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has said that women have an important role to play in solving many of the world's sustainability challenges.

President General of the TUC, Peter Esele, said this while speaking on efforts by the labour centre to boost women's role in addressing population growth and food insecurity during this year's International Women's Day celebration, organised by the TUC women commission held on Monday, March 8, 2010 at the chevron club Gbagada, Lagos.

Esele called for total support for women to celebrate womanhood all over the world in recognition of their immense contribution to the moral development of the world.

He said: "Our population research shows that empowering women to determine their own reproductive healthcare can help slow population growth, limit greenhouse gas emission, and improve adaptation to a changing climate.

"When people wonder where my secret lies; I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size. But when I start to tell them, they think I'm telling lies. I say, it's in the reach of my arms; I am married to a phenomenal woman. And so, Boma Esele is my secret."

Recalling how women recognition was first put into consideration in the world, Esele said: "In 1869, British MP John Stuart Mill was the first person in Parliament to call for women's right to vote. And on 19 September, 1893 New Zealand became the first country in the world to give women the right to vote.

"In 1910, an international conference of working women was held in Copenhagen. Clara Zetkin, leader of the women's office for the Social Democratic Party in Germany, tabled the idea of an International Women's Day. She proposed that every year in every country there should be a celebration on the same day, a Women's Day, to press for their demands," he explained.

According to him, success of the first International Women's Day in 1911 exceeded all expectation as meetings were organised everywhere in small towns and even the villages halls were packed so full that male workers were asked to give up their places for women, while the men stayed at home with their children for a change, and their wives, the captive housewives, went to meetings.

"I am proud to honour the diverse contributions of women in advancing the common cause of freedom, justice and equality, over the past years, we have witnessed women of courage, compassion, strength and hope playing transformative roles in our societies, inspiring the international community and enriching our world," he said.

The Labour leader stressed that TUC used the celebration to call on the Federal Government to declare every March 8, as a work free day to crown and give respect to women.

"We also will love to see more women taking up appointments in key areas of our national life. This, we believe, will drastically reduce cases of fraud and other social vices in the country, as women, we all know, are less prone to taking to crimes," he said, adding: "Further more, the Ministry of Women Affairs should be re-introduced to champion the education of women.

"I urge you to rise up and speak out against all unpopular policies, including the ongoing succession confusion created by the ruling People Democratic Party (PDP) because of the importance of making women's voices heard in agriculture and other areas: although women comprise the majority of the world's farmers, they remain underrepresented in farmers groups, associations, and unions."

He however said, "On our part, we will continue to ensure that more women are elected into all organs of the congress at all levels, not forgetting of course the immense contributions of Dr Peace Nkiru Obiajulu, Nigeria's first female president general of a labour federation, who we understand will also be honoured today. She was in the forefront for the actualisations of what we have today as TUC."