Every Girl-child deserves an education!

What the Founder of Hope for African Children Initiative has to say:

If possible, please give an estimate of the amount of people you have impacted with your actions to create positive change and explain how.

An estimate of about 7,500 lives have been touched through my actions to create positive change in my country. These actions range from my involvement with NGOs and Volunteer Organizations, my personal actions through my own Organization to harness resources towards bridging the enrollment gap into schools between Orphans/Vulnerable out-of-school children and children in school, through the provision of educational scholarships and other psycho-social support programs.

Having spent some years in the North Eastern part of Nigeria, and seen what life is in the refugee camp for the IDPs, I became more aware of worldwide humanitarian crises especially with the refugees; ever since then, I lead and co-ordinate national actions to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems in Nigeria. This I first of all began with the victims of the Boko Haram Insurgencies in the North Eastern part of Nigeria, and with the Internally Displaced Persons, especially women and children in those areas.

Two years ago, with the assistance of some of my friends, I launched a Volunteer group with the spectacular aim of helping refugees and the internally displaced persons in the North. The group provides aid in nearly all the North Eastern states of Nigeria that were ravaged by the violent Muslim extremists. This aid is given to children and women victims, and to people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe, primarily due to armed conflict, epidemics, malnutrition, exclusion from health care, or natural disasters, for emergency medical assistance to help the victims of the incessant bombings in the North. Also, we spent time serving as teachers and teaching the children in the camps, since they have been out of school for a long time as a result of the violence/situations in the North. Today, the group is growing so fast that we have about 130 young people working with us, under the umbrella of the “I-SUPPORT” group of the Hope for African Children Initiative (HACI).

Secondly, I have spent most of my life advocating for access to quality education and working with children living with disabilities and communities orphaned by HIV/AIDS while ensuring that the rights of women and girls globally are protected. Through Hope for African Children Initiative (HACi), a Non-Profit Organization I founded in 2013 with the goals of educating every child, giving aids to children, providing tuition assistance and educational materials to primary and secondary schools; empowers women & children in rural communities while supporting reintegration of internally displaced people (IDPs) in Nigeria.

 In some rural communities, Primary and Secondary schools are poorly equipped, ssome don’t have toilets where the school children could go to ease themselves. On the course of our study, we identified many places like this. Children’s health is endangered, open defecation becomes the order of the day, girls are subjected to threats etc. In the last 3years, HACI has also helped to construct safe pit toilets in schools which are currently serving over 3,000 children, ensuring that children not only survive, but thrive. Open defecation practice is almost non-existent while school absenteeism from diarrhea illness has decreased significantly. Students and teachers feel encouraged. School retention rate has increased and more teachers and children stay in school. Children are becoming aware of their sexuality and privacy as the toilets are designed to meet their needs. Teachers stay longer in school to prepare lesson notes while children remain in school for longer periods in order to complete their homework just because they have access to toilets. This has helped tremendously to aid good study environment for the pupils and students and shape their lives positively.

Bold in our ambition and powerful in our care, HACi does everything to save the African children.

What are your plans to further increase your social impact over the next two years? *

For the next two years, I would like to touch more lives and inspire a greater future through working with and educating the special children (children with disabilities). I also have the plan to be fundraising to build wells in a Refugee Camp in Northern Nigeria to provide poor people, especially the refugees, with access to clean water and by helping to build some schools in rural Obollo-Eke and Northern Nigeria so as to create a platform for gender equality into the education system for both girls and boys.

In a bid to impact more lives in the society, I am planning to expand and extend the HACI CENTRE to cover the North. The idea of this project aims to build more centers that offer a holistic approach to helping Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), female and children victims of Boko Haram violence, especially in the North East of Nigeria. It is part of HACI larger project to propose a civilian and civil society centered approach of post-conflict reconstruction.

I am also visioning to create a wide network of youth activists across Nigeria, with an idea to bring Nigerian Youths under one umbrella through social activism, volunteerism, social media and citizen journalism.

How have you demonstrated leadership? *

I am the founder of Hope for African Children Initiative (HACI), which has impacted many lives since its inception. Many children have been kept and sustained in school till this day because of the support given by HACI.

In the last two years, I have been a leading part in a unique project called “HACI CENTER”. HACI CENTER is a community cultural and educational center in Nsukka, which services hundreds of residents of this under-privileged and multi-cultural borough – famous for being a hub for communities of Orphans, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), victims of “Fulani Heardmen massacre”, asylum seekers, and less privileged children. It is operated by some 180 volunteers and, in addition to an active library, includes a children's after-school program, an active academic center, artist encouragement programs and a variety of cultural events and courses open to the public. 

Over the time, I have become more involved in promoting humanitarian causes on a political level. I have regularly participated in the Udenu Refugee Day, dedicated to raising awareness of the situation of refugees throughout the country, and I was an invited speaker at the Eastern Economic Forum, an annual meeting in Enugu, which brings together Nigerian leaders to discuss the most pressing issues facing the world including health and the environment in 2015 and 2016. I utilized that opportunity by lobbying humanitarian interests for the victims of the “Fulani Heardmen incessant killings” in Enugu State, where I had the opportunity to meet with members of State House of Assembly and the Senator representing Enugu North Senatorial District, Senator Ayogu Eze.

I have had the pleasure of leading so many Social impacting groups from my University days, and I have been entrusted with a great deal of responsibilities, most of which are democratic, humanitarian and youth activities.

How have you demonstrated innovation? *

I have demonstrated innovation through my resilient involvement with children, especially, the disabled and the street children. These are children who have been abandoned and seen as unfortunate, no-good, never-to-do-well - because of their deformities. While some were sent out of their home because they are considered as evil children, "Osu" (Outcasts) and witches, others were displaced by violence and end up in streets as beggars. These children get into the streets and struggle to make out a living for themselves by all means. Some engage themselves in all sorts of crimes - robbery, prostitution, stealing, and street life to make both ends meet. These are some of the children we work with. We try to arrest the situations while the children are still young.

In Nigeria, HACi is on the ground – every day and in times of crisis. Our pioneering programs address children’s unique needs, giving them a healthy start, the opportunity to have formal education and protection from harm.

Since the inception of the Organization, we have been able to donate study materials to pupils and students in the Primary and Secondary School levels in rural communities. In the past three years, we have also constructed new toilets in 5 schools, and girls can now feel safe in schools and their self-esteem restored. This has helped tremendously to aid good study environment for the pupils and students and shape their lives positively.