Rihanna – 777 Tour

As we jet around on Rihanna‘s unprecedented 777 Tour — you know, the one where she’s celebrating seven years of seven albums by flying to seven countries for seven shows in seven days with seven lords a’ leaping, etc. — we’re reminded that, wow, pop’s imperial princess has released a lot of records in a very short period of time.

Williams’ Sisters Live In Lagos Nigeria

American tennis super-stars, Venus and Serena Williams have said that their visit to Lagos, as part of a two-nation tour that will see them play exhibition matches and train kids, was to promote women’s rights. The sisters are among the world and United States’ most successful athletes, sharing 22 major women’s singles championships between them.

Their trip is aimed at promoting “the role that women play in shifting perceptions and encouraging development at all levels across the African continent,” said a statement from the Breaking The Mould initiative they are representing.

Serena, 31, and Venus, 32, are to meet the Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos state, hold a tennis clinic at the Ikoyi Club, visit a puberty education class for girls and play an exhibition match before heading to South Africa on November 2.

“They are coming to Lagos to encourage more women to break moulds that have stood between them and their potentials,” the statement said. Gender disparity is an acute problem in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country of roughly 160 million people, with the most glaring divides existing in the mainly Muslim north.

According to Gender Equality Index, Nigeria ranks 118 out of 134 countries worldwide, a British Council study released in May said.

ALWAYS, a brand of Procter & Gamble Nigeria is supporting the visiting Williams Sisters to empower women and young girls to believe in themselves in a bid to achieve their full potential in life.

On 1 November 2012, the duo will partner with feminine hygiene brand ALWAYS for a joint girls empowerment event at the Government Secondary School in Osborne, Ikoyi.

Together, ALWAYS and the Williams sisters aim to empower girls and inspire them to live their life to the fullest by: stressing the idea of sisterhood and that girls teaming up and supporting each other may achieve great things; teaching young girls the value of hard work, passion, determination and self-belief and leading by best example that neither colour or gender shall be reason enough to hold girls back.