Here is what I am doing to support girls in my community - Jennifer Umeh

I shouldn’t be shamed for sharing my pains, struggles and life experiences. No girl deserves to be slammed or termed ‘attention-seeking’ or ‘too sensitive’ for sharing her story. Our stories need to be told because in them is the hope for survival for every young woman.

My life’s journey epitomizes, to a great extent, the challenges faced by the African girl child. I have been through most of the issues plaguing young women, from domestic abuse , low self esteem and everything else in between.  Walking young women through their ordeals is a mutual healing process as it helps me as much as it does them.

While visiting the motherless babies home in my community, I considered it my duty to mentor them, put smiles on their faces and help them  make the right life choices. Gradually, this mentoring circle grew to become a house hold name in humanitarian sector. 

Our programs inspire girls to have an independent voice,  Confidence and problem solving capacity to speak up,  be decision makers and create social change . To address this, Hope for African Girls Initiative has a conference for young girls as well as outreach programs for primary and secondary schools.

In addition, to debunk the myth that young women are naturally face with Inferiority Complex, we created a platform for all the volunteers Here, we come together in an informal setting to discuss issues relevant to girls, share opportunities, advertise and have meaningful debates about girls issues in Africa.

Our approach is the first of its kind. Our structure includes a board, a committee, and Volunteers. Our diversity reveals the implicit beauty of our differences and we are determined to do much more.

Through our several social media platforms, we invite  volunteers  to contribute to our planned projects.. Most times, our outreach programs were carried out by the volunteers and our growing membership increases the need to incorporate a wide range of issues facing every young girl. We work closely with other NGOs while monitoring progress through the appropriate authorities.

I am that strong Girl that everyone knew would make it through the worst. I am that Fearless girl, the one who would dare to do anything. I am that girl who never backed down.

I am Jennifer Umeh
I am bold for change

Educate A Girl Scholars

Ten students in Nigeria were selected and sponsored by Whole woman Network to attend the Legendary leadership conference at Oriental Hotel Lagos. The conference was organised by BeenThere & DoneThat Ltd. JENNIFER UMEH the founder of Hope for African Girls Initiative was One of the selected participants

The students was among the fifty others who attended the Educate a girl workshop in lagos in December 2015. It's 7 months since the Educate a girl workshop took place. The founder of whole woman Network Mrs Juliet Ume-Onyido has always encouraged Educate A Girl Scholars to make sure their impart is been felt in their communities no matter how little it is.

The students participated in the one day Leadership and Teambuilding conference at Oriental Hotel lagos Nigeria .
According to the Organisers. The purpose of the conference was to inspire, motivate and empower young Nigerians who are
or who wish to be in positions of
leadership. The participants will have the opportunity to learn key leadership lessons such as integrity, honesty, determination, courage, commitment, confidence,goal-setting and positivity.


The Organiser of the Workshop Dipo said the workshop
was designed to help participants
understand the importance of leadership, creativity, and team building within the business world. Having speakers consisting local and international, the activities at the conference would not only enhance participant’ knowledge on
leadership and team building, but they would also help other change makers build a close connection with their fellow Mates.
Speaking with Sukurat Adenike one of the selected participants (EAG scholar) she said "My experience was awesome. I learnt other leadership traits other than the ones I knew and I also enjoyed the interactions the panelists had all through the program and I have been able to engage young people in my community. I am a journalist and I also run an NGO called FutureforFututeInitiatives"


Another Participant express her self to us, Amarachi C. Attamah, a Radio/Tv Presenter, a performing poet and a writier. She said "I was very delighted to be selected as one of the participants of the Legendary Leadership Conference. It came with the excitement that comes when you know you are going to pick a new dress. I was selected as one of the EAG scholars who sent in their EAG conference report. After the screening, I made it to the list of those sponsored for the Legendary Leadership Conference. To me, it was an opportunity to widen my horizon. The impact of the conference was as outstanding as the tallest tower and as vital as air. I cannot house an atom of regret fro making it to the conference. As a human, I learnt to be impactful. As a woman, I learnt to be stronger and focused. As a participant, I learnt what it means to be a Legendary Leader.
Meeting some personalities I admire from afar was exciting to me. I expressed myself and made my voice relevant. That I learnt from the powerful young persons who shared their knowledge and experiences with us."

Legendary Leadership Conference she said , added another important feather to her cap and equipped her more for greater tomorrow. Amarachi concluded.

We went futher to interview other participants. Nina Mbah, Founder Nina Prize, She said, "Listening to various leaders in different fields at the conference, I learned that every experience am currently passing through to achieve my dreams is absolutely necessary to making me better and therefore should be happily embraced. And in the course of my mission, never to forget empathy and encouragement needed in carrying other good leaders along."

Another participant who spoke to our correspondent Uwandu Esther Chioma. Said " I felt so excited and elated...being selected from the many people that applied. It showed how relevant I can be.
I have been working on women issues from the grass root level, and my team hopes to go beyond where are now. The conference made me to understand that there are still more works to be done, especially among the youths."

While speaking to many selected participants Adenike superb, One of the team members of Hope for African Girls Initiative, shared her experince with our Correspondent she said" The Leadership program sponsored by Juliet Ume-Onyido; the altruist in deed, kind and ideology was a bumper event. It was filled with eye-openers, professional advice in the field of journalism, presence of profound dignitaries and elegant women. Just a few of the myriad things we discussed which includes the topic 'politics and journalism, lessons from the last decade/lessons for future leaders', was anchored by Victor Mathias, Tolulope Balogun and Osikhena Dirisu. Victor declared the role of the leaders and the media, being divergent. He also stated the invention of the social media being a blessing and a curse, frowned at the idea of voting once in four years, as he thinks it is not just the vote that counts, but what happens after voting. Tolulope emphasised on strategy change and approach to solving problems in our country, discarding the old, which has refused to help. Osikhena raised a call for the legitimacy of stories by bloggers and reporters, to strive to report the exact situations that they appear. Also, that these reporters give their opinions while reporting, which i feel would be impossible; for their profession is a liberal art. Kate Henshaw, Lola Shoneyin, Arinola Giwa, had a discussion on 'Gender and Identity, Turning Barriers to leadership opportunities'." She went futher to say that "Kate defined gender to be male and female. She made a profound and simplistic definition of gender equality, away from it's misconstrued meaning to mean having same or equal opportunities. The question, is patriarchy the women's or men's fault?. It was posed by one of the attendees. After reflecting, I reminisced the saying, what a man can do, a woman can do better; I have come to deem it wrong, an axiom of strife and a sheer competitive statement. I have come to believe more in the reform made to that axiom which says: a woman was born to do what a man cannot do. With the distinction and truism in it, I say patriarchy is the fault of whoever believes in it.
Lola Shoneyin, with her striking and interesting rejoinder, "the level of a woman's education determines how beautiful her kitchen will look" to the saying, a woman's place is in the kitchen.
As a rational woman, i asked myself "what have I gained from this program?" and "what has it impacted in me?". With an addition to my enlightenment, and wherefrom I speak, I can now impact on others, as was to me, and do wonderfully more."

Jennifer Umeh also shared her experience with us. She said "I felt really good to have my servant leadership recognised. I felt elated being selected to participate in the one day Leadership and Team building conference at Oriental Hotel lagos, Nigeria . It showed how relevant I can be. It was a delight to have benefited from this Leadership training. The Conference has done well in improving my leadership skills".

During the conference, Educate a girl scholars were able to
learn, engage in and reflect on issues related to community service, social justice and
leadership.


Some key Notes of the conference are The Importance of Visionary Leadership on the Economic Development of Nigeria
(Mr Laolu Akande, Senior Special Assistant (Media & Publicity) to Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo)
Other Distinguished Speakers/PanellistsPanel Discussion 1: Politics and Journalism, Lessons from the Last Decade/Lessons for Future Leaders (Osikhena Dirisu, Tolu Adeleru Balogun and Victor Mathias) Panel Discussion 2: Gender and Identity,
Turning Barriers to Leadership
Opportunities (Kate Henshaw, Lola Shoneyin and Arinola Giwa)
Panel Discussion 3: Politics and Governance, how Young People can make a Difference (Gbenga Olorunpomi, Nnamdi
Anekwe, Demola Olarewanju, Oluseun Akinrinoye and Ibilola Essien)

HAGi: How it all started

We are pleased to introduce you to Jennifer Umeh from Anambra State, Nigeria. The 21-year-old youth is a student of The Federal Polytechnic Offa, Kwara State and she is the founder of Hope for African Girls Initiative. Her drive is drawn from a workshop she attended in December 2015.

Her full Story (Read and be Inspired)


As a survivor of Domestic Violence, Jennifer Umeh believes that girls and young women access to education and health service is fundamental for sustainable development in Nigeria. Jennifer grew up in a broken home with rough experiences of abuse and neglect. Her parent divorced Nine months after her birth in Eastern Nigeria. Her Father showed no interest towards her education.

She was raised by her single mum, grand mother, uncles, aunties, and people. As a girl filled with many ambitions despite her experiences. she was determined to further her education. With her decision making ability, She believed that if she could go to school, she would gain knowledge and skills access limitless opportunities and reach her potentials in life.


Today, Jennifer Umeh is 21-year-old and She is the pioneer of Hope for African Girls Initiative (HAGi) an
organisation founded to Educate Girls to be empowered enough to stand up for themselves and to discover their self-identity
through quality education and
empowerment. Her skills include Public speaking, Teaching, Writing, Counselling and Leadership.

She likes attending workshops and seminars organised by both local and international organisations that provides platform for her to maximise her youth impact and be a strong voice for others. Jennifer Umeh is a Campus Correspondent with The Nation Newspaper and she is also Mentor a Girl Child Fellow. She is currently a member of African Liberty Organisation for development (ALOD) and a Youth Ambassador for Earthplus.


Jennifer's inspiration started after she had attended the Educate a Girl Nigeria workshop in Lagos. The workshop was an eye-opener to her as she became aware of too many illicit behaviours bedevilling the girl child around the world. She saw the need to help young people, she desired to speak out so that her voice could be heard. She said to herself, if only her voice could change the status quo in Africa, why should she hold back. she approached some Local Organisations indicating her interest to serve as a volunteer. She joined Her Voice Africa, YALI Network, One African Child, Earthplus, AREAi, She is a Model International etc.

In order to be exuberant and to ensure that her voice is loud enough, then she founded Hope for African Girls Initiative (HAGi) in January 2016.


On how she started her journey
As a teenager, Jennifer started by Visiting the motherless babies homes in her community and taking out time to play and educate the children giving special attention to the girls without money or financial assistance.

She shared with them the knowledge of what she was thought at the workshop that inspired her. "it felt so beautiful to see them smiling not letting me go home .It was wonderful to teach what they would not learn even at school.” She said


Jennifer inspired many of her friends with most of her facebook post and her passion for girls and was able to attract other youth to support her project. It then shifted from ‘me’ (Jennifer Umeh Initiative) to ‘we’ (Hope for African Girls Initiative) Together with her passionate Volunteers,

They are supporting community-based schools in Africa and their literacy effort is playing an instrumental role in ensuring that young girls in Africa have access to education. It is an investment that will give dividends to generations unborn. In less than a year they have mentored and empowered over 1000 young girls in Nigeria.

The programme was held in schools, including Kwara, Enugu, Anambra, Lagos, Rivers, Abuja,
Ogun, Abia, Ebonyi and Imo states

Jennifer has been able to develop her leadership competence by seizing other training and volunteer opportunities that
allow for young people to be co-learners and well as active contributors to the development of their community.


Jennifer's advice to young people who want to make a difference but aren’t sure of how?

You must not wait until you become affluent before you impact people. Successful people always focus on the positive side even when they know challenges are inevitable. Start with small steps. I did not magically start mentoring young girls all at once. I started with trainings, and conferences. But that is not even strictly a requirement to get engaged. Helping a less fortunate individual by sharing your food or your time is a good start. Also volunteering in outreach programs and participating or joining in school and community-based organisations could help.

 “The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.” —Pablo Picasso

The 2016 Spoken Words Competition Results.

Entries were open for submission from  – May 10th to June 20, 2016.

THE 2016 SPOKEN WORDS COPETITION WINNER (June 25, 2016)

Hope for African Girls Initiative and the spoken words  judges are pleased to announce the  winner of 2016 spoken words , Valentine Onyeka Ogunaka.

 Valentine’s “I will speak for her”  is a clever, deftly delivered spoken words which  remains  in the imagination long after it has  been read.

Our thanks to all the poets who gave us a chance to read their work, and our congratulations to Valentine who wins N100, 000

……………………………………………

THE 2016 SPOKEN WORDS SHORTLIST (June  25, 2016)

We are delighted to announce the shortlist for the 2016 Spoken words competition. Our judges re-read the longlisted entries  and came up with this outstanding list of four. Congratulations to the shortlisted writers

Caleb Adebayo
AISHA

Daughter of Destiny
Chucks Obi

Fortune C. Okorie
Girls are not Brides

Imam Abdulbasit Kolapo
Girls not Brides
………………………………………………….


Thank you everyone for entering the contest. We had over 150 entries and so many brilliant Spoken words  from clearly talented Poets. our Judges’ Highly Commended the entries. Congratulations to you all. Keep writing!


The Hope for African Girls Initiative relies entirely on donations from individuals and corporations. HAGI is an Organisation which will depend on funds raised yearly to achieve the objectives.

Generation next and Africa' growth

The IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, in collaboration with Atlas Network, has organised a four-day Students and Young Professional African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) conference in Accra, the capital of Ghana. Participants at the event discussed how youths can champion Africa’s growth. JENNIFER UMEH the Execuctive Director Hope for African Girls Initiative was there.

What are the dividends of democracy and good governance for Africa in the last 50 years? This was the topic for discussion at a four-day Students and Young Professionals (SYPALA) conference held in Accra, the capital of Ghana, last week.

Over 100 students from West Africa gathered at Mensvic Hotels in Accra for the event, organised by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, a thinktank, and ATLAS Network. The event was aimed at training a new generation of young African leaders to solve the continent’s problems.

IMANI’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Franklin Cudjoe, said conference was a drive to awaken youths to take the advantage of innovation and entrepreneurship to unlock the continent’s economic potential.  Cudjoe urged African leaders to promote the contienent’s growth through economic freedom and sound policies.

Executive Director, African Liberty Organisation for Development (ALOD) Adedayo Thomas, who spoke on Achieving market economy, said youths would support the government that is  willing to implement free market policies. He said there would be no growth if the government controls the economy, noting that Africa is poor because the government suppressed free market economy.

He called for limited government and liberalisation of public institution, saying: “Africa can no longer tolerate plundering of wealth by a few in the name equality. For Africa to rise, government must withdraw from economy and allow free market economy to bring growth.”

Ghana Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors’ CEO Senyo Hosi, said countries that achieved a sustained economic growth promoted the ideas of liberty, individual autonomy and property rights.

He said there would not be meaningful progress if individuals did not have liberty to innovate and protect intellectual property. He said the conference was to open the eyes of the participants to importance of freedom and capitalism.

A leader blogger and entrepreneur, Japheth Omojuwa, said libertarianism brought more opportunities for African youths, pointing out that more innovative young people have achieved prosperity in the last 10 years in countries, such as Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda.

He said the government must give people a right to have choices and protect the rights of minorities. The development of Africa, he said, rests on the energies of its youths to bring out good innovations that will change the story of the continent.

Founder EDEL Technology Consulting, a digital product firm, Ms Ethel Cofie, identified lack of courage as a challenge preventing women to innovate. Beyond raising children and family, Ms Cofie said women dream big and compete with men in entrepreneurship.

“We need to dispel a notion that women in leadership positions are authoritative. We need to encourage and support ourselves and pursue open opportunities to achieve our latent potentials,” she said.

Director, Economic Growth Office of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Brain Conklin, explained how economic freedom could be used for determining human development.

According to him, regional economic communities are meant to be building blocks for continental integration, adding that the government’s restrictions were threatening meaningful development.

The conference also featured panel of discussion on participatory democracy and term limit for African leaders.

A participant from Nigeria, Amaka Udeh, said many African countries have the potential to be the next economic destination, adding that the struggle for power among leaders was part of the reasons people remained poor.

A participant from Ghana, Richard Abeiku, described the conference as educative and thought-provoking, saying it challenged him to take up responsibility to educate people on entrepreneurship and innovation.

Another participant, Henry Eshun, said: “I have been enlightened on the causes of African challenges and the way forward. I will go back to my community to see how I can change the story of my people.”

Maimuna's Story

Maimuna’s story was shared by Girls Not Brides member Girl Child Concerns

Where I am from, education is disregarded by so many. Everyone wants to be successful, drive flashy cars, wear the most expensive clothes and carry the latest phones. But I believe that education is essential for everyone; it is education that helps people to earn respect and recognition.
In my village, which is in Kaduna State in northern Nigeria, hawking is seen as more productive than educating a child. Kids are married off at a very early age, too. You will see a 12 year old who already has a baby and is tied down with so many responsibilities.
In my community, if a parent allows their female child to reach the age of 15 in the house, they are seen as irresponsible and their children will be insulted. At 15, single girl is considered a disappointment because all of her friends are married. No man in the village will want to marry her.


THE ONLY GIRL IN SCHOOL
I was 14 years old when our village school re-opened. Most parents only sent their male children. But my dad had made up his mind to do whatever it took to send his children to school because he had dropped out when he was very young. I was the only girl in the whole school.
With time, my friends started developing interest. Most of them joined because they found it a way to escape chores and others were impressed by the changes they saw in me. Registration was free so anyone could join the school. As for my mum, she only allowed me to go to school because my dad said so. Every morning she gave me stuff to sell when I got to school.
My teacher noticed my interest in studies. He checked my work and corrected me when I was wrong. Anytime he didn’t see me in school, he’d come all the way home and take me on his bike to school because he didn’t want me to lose interest like others did.
By the time I reached my sixth year of primary school, all of my friends had been married off and my relatives kept pressuring my dad to marry me off too. They said: sending me to school was a bad decision because “Educated children end up spoilt and irresponsible”. But he refused.


MY DAD, SCHOOL AND TRAINING HAVE HELPED MAKE MY DREAMS COME TRUE
One day after I completed primary school, my father asked my cousins and my brothers and sisters what plans we had for the future. I was sure that I didn’t want marriage yet so I spoke out. I told him I wanted to continue my studies to university level. He was impressed by my ambitious response and gave his word to support me even though we didn’t have the money.
Three years into secondary school, with no friends but my Dad, bearing long walks to school and back, hardship, hunger, and no money, I almost gave up. But Girl Child Concerns helped me. They helped pay for my school fees and books and gave me life skills training too. My dad and I have decided that any time I come back home for holidays, I will teach my younger relations, married women and other youths who are interested in the things I have learnt at school, including Islamic knowledge.
Many people are impressed by this action I have taken, and wish they chose school over marriage. My sisters say that once they got married, it’s the same routine all the time: chores, babies and all with no money to take care of themselves. The women I teach tell me that they wish they had had the chance to go to school, even for a day.
Others, especially my relatives, are still against it. Whenever I come back for the holidays they look at me in pity and say: “oh maimuna, so this is the path you have chosen for yourself”. Well, “idan ba’a yi sharan masallaci ba ‘a yi na kasuwa” meaning- one day, in the process of getting western knowledge, I will end up with an unwanted pregnancy. Their words hurt me but I refuse to give up.


WHEN I FINISH MY STUDIES I WANT TO
IMPROVE HEALTH IN MY COMMUNITY
I have chosen to study health. My community has a large population and an unending problem of early marriage, which means children are born every day. But there is only one hospital, with 6 wards and few attendants. It’s more like a pharmacy or clinic because only minor injuries can be treated. For most problems, they just prescribe panadol, drips and injections, without finding out what the patient’s problem is.


Lives are at risk, and that touches my heart. When I finish my studies I will go back to my village and make a change. To help with the reconstruction of the hospital; treat as many people as possible, assist the pregnant, old and helpless. I believe that with good health we can all work to achieve our dreams. This is the goal I have set for myself and by God’s grace nothing will stop me from achieving it.


I would like to use this as an opportunity to advise or plead any parent who is reading this to allow their children, especially girls, to go to school. Those who have been lucky to go to school should please try to share the knowledge they have acquired with siblings, friends, whoever they can reach out to. We should recognise that “the best gift any parent can give to their child is education”.


source: GirlnotBride

The Change Agents

Jennifer Umeh, the founder of HAGI was among the fifty students to attend the 13th NBC/Coca-Cola The Nation Campus Life Correspondent’s’ Workshop

The Nigerian Bottling Company Limited (NBC) and its franchise partner, Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited (CCNL) once again demonstrated their commitment to youth development in Nigeria, hosting 50 students of different tertiary institutions across the country to a two-day workshop at the 11th edition of the biannual Campus Life workshop in Lagos.
The workshop themed, Building a Drug-free and Non-cultist Generation, was organised in collaboration with The Nation Newspaper for the student journalists.
Community Affairs Manager, CCNL Emeka Mba, expressed the delight of NBC and CCNL with the initiative, especially as serves to empower the youth and points them in the right direction towards the campaign for a drug-free and non-cultist generation. He encouraged the participants to be good ambassadors and report happenings in their environment objectively.
“The Coca-Cola System is aware of the potential that resides in the youth and this initiative is one of the cardinal programmes of the System’s corporate social investments in Nigeria,” Mba said.
At the workshop, Mr Femi Falana (SAN), lawyer and human rights activist, encouraged the student journalists to be the agents of change Nigeria desperately needs.
“To change the society, the youth have to be convinced that the society requires a surgical operation and must be ready for sacrifice,” Falana said.
Assistant Director, Drug Abuse Preventive Education, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Mrs Stella Ngwoke enlightened the youths in a talk titled Causes, Signs and Consequences of Drug Abuse
She urged the youths to play frontline roles in the fight against drug abuse, as key stakeholders in the quest for a drug-free society.
“Drug abuse is dangerous and should not be tolerated in all spheres of social life,” she said.
Editor of The Nation Newspaper’s Campus Life column, Mr Wale Ajetunmobi spoke to the student journalists on Writing and Phone/E-mail Communication Rules and on Ethics of Journalism Practice.

The brain behind who-is-who in Campuslife Magazine.

  Students writers from various institutions 

in Nigeria under the auspices of Campus life have published the maiden edition of the “Who -Is-Who In Campus Life Magazine”, which is aimed at bringing together the offsprings of the late Mrs. Ngozi Agbo and to brought to remembrance the late matriarch. 

Jennifer Umeh, The Executive Director of Hope for African Girls Initiative is the brain behind the Magazine.

Speaking on the development, the Editor in Chief of the publication, Jennifer Umeh, asserted reasons behind the publication as reflecting on the legacies of the late matriach.
“This magazine Who is Who in Campuslife is borne out of our desire to immortalize the legacies of late Ngozi and to celebrate those who believed in her vision and followed it even after her life. Thus, it centers on late Ngozi Agbo (nee Nwuzor). To that end, that brings to bear how many lives she touched and improved.
“The Nation was lucky to have been enriched by her and I truly believe that her legacy will live on”.
Also speaking on the development, Femi Asu, former Campuslife reporter, eulogized late Ngozi as a teacher, source of inspiration, a friend, a change agent, and an enabler of dreams to many young persons and not only to those in the pen family.
Asu, added “the fact that Wale Ajetunmobi, one of her mentees in the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), has been coordinating the affairs of Campus life since her demise speaks volumes about her (Aunty Ngozi’s) efforts at mentoring and building young people for the good future she dreamt about”
In his own view, Gbenga Ojo, a graduate of Petroleum Training Institute, Delta state, listed students now working in media houses as a result of the training they received under the platform as undergraduates.
However, there were 72 students reporters featured in the maiden edition of the Who Is Who In Campus Life publication.

The Executive Director of HAGI was recently awarded the outstanding student in her School

Jennifer Umeh the Executive Director of Hope for African Girls Initiative, was recently awarded the outstanding student in her school.For distinguishing herself in excellent reporting, Jennifer Umeh, a student of Mass Communication Department of the Federal Polytechnic, Offa (OFFA POLY) in Kwara State has been honoured as the Most Outstanding Student of the Year by the institution. Jennifer, who is a CAMPUSLIFE correspondent, was presented with the award during the Gala Night organised by the Students’ Union Government (SUG) last Friday at Fan Suite Hotel in Offa.


She received the award from the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) Senate, Oluwatosin Ogunkuade. The SUG president, Yusuf Olalekan, urged students to be good ambassadors of the institution as he recognised their support for his administration. He promised to always fight for their welfare. The event featured musical entertainment by upcoming artistes on the campus, including Starboy Dance group and Olamide of Offa. This was followed by a lecture tagged: What
next after school?, which was anchored by the NANS Senate President. Ogunkuade, who is a former student of the polytechnic, said students must be up and doing in both academic pursuit and
entrepreneurship. He urged them to work hard to achieve their aims, saying: “You must not be
seen idle. Always use your head to think about good ideas that will make your life better. You
should never be tempted to steal. With good ideas, you can make legitimate money for a living.”


The lecture was followed by award presentation, which came in four categories, certificate award, award of honour, awards of excellence and management award of recognition. Some of the awardees include, Saliu Olawunmi, Olaito Adelele, Ola Iyana, Lasisi Adams and Babalola Taiwo. Speaking after she received the award, Jennifer said she saw the honour as a reward for her effort to make the campus a better place to study. She said: “I am grateful to the management for this honour. I was not expecting it though, because no campus reporter has ever been honoured this way by the school. Campus reporters are important people not just on campus, also in the larger society. But they are given less attention. But, this award will spur other campus writers to make more efforts for the peace and progress of the school.”

The Cheetah Generation

Early this year, Jennifer Umeh, The Founder of Hope for African Girls Initiative, attended the Liberty and entrepreneurship Camp held at Lagos State Polytechnic. During the four days workshop, an entrepreneur and youth development expert, Sarah Kawala, has described entrepreneurship as the solution to poverty in Africa.
Kawala said African youths must be part of the “cheetah generation”, a term she used to describe young’ people who do not wait for the government to do things for them. If Africa must develop, she said, its youths must shoulder the responsibility for the continent’s salvation.

Kawala, a Kenyan, spoke at Liberty and Entrepreneurship Camp jointly organised by African Liberty Organisation for Development (ALOD) and the United States-based Language of Liberty Institute (LLI). The four-day event with the theme: The call of entrepreneurship, was held at the Engineering Theatre of the Lagos State Polytechnic (LASPOTECH).
One hundred students from some higher institutions attended the camp to learn the principles of free society, liberty and entrepreneurship. The objective of the event was to chart a course for peace, liberty and prosperity.
The programme was supported by Network for a free Society and Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty.

The ALOD Executive Director, Adedayo Thomas, blamed Africa’s woes on the leaders’ addiction to socialism, saying the philosophy closed doors of economic prosperity on the continent He said the practice of centralised authority and payment of social entitlements would take Africa to nowhere, noting: “Our political institutions in Africa don’t respond well to changes. It is unfortunate that many of us trust the government, whereas it is robbing Peter to pay Paul.”
Thomas said principles of free society and liberty had brought prosperity and mutual respect to countries that put them into practice, adding that if people value their fellow humans, the society would achieve peace and development.
He told the participants not to look up to the government for their survival, but to see their salvation in their creativity.
Speaking on Theorising capitalism: An analysis of opportunities, Mr Ibrahim Anoba, a lecturer at the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), said African countries must pull down obstructions at their borders, which were raised against free trade. This, he said, will bring about economic prosperity.
He said: “When people have freedom to trade, values would be created and mutual respect would be earned.”
Anoba added that closed borders would engender closed opportunities for the young entrepreneurs to create wealth, wondering why there are trade borders when trade itself is peaceful.
He added: “It is time African governments removed barriers against economic activities and allow people to trade freely.”

Wale Ajetumobi, Editor of CAMPUSLIFE of The Nation, who spoke on Liberty, media and the best value, advised the participants to develop their latent skills. As budding entreapreneurs, he said the participants must understand the market and calculate risks involved. He charged the participants to engage social media positively and become entrepreneurs who earn living using their mobile phones.
He said: “It is very difficult to achieve prosperity without creating a structure to leverage your efforts. With the right structure in place, every action you take will lead to big reward in physical prosperity.”

Other speakers at the event included proponents of libertarianism, such as Dayo Pelumi, Alamu Olamilekan, Adebola Bakare and Segun Sotola.
After the session, participants were divided into groups to engage themselves on what they learned from each speaker and come up with entrepreneurial ideas.
A participant, Olamide Akinro, a graduate of University of Ibadan, said: “The camp is a good platform to help youths discover the potential. It helps to awaken the giant in us, open our eyes to some problem we encounter daily and how we can proffer solution to them. I have been prepared for better tomorrow and how to be a change agent in the society.”

2016 Girl’s Empowerment Seminar

Application is now open for the 2016 Girl’s Empowerment Seminar scheduled to hold on 28th of June 2016 at Lagos.

Theme “Girls not BRIDES” Your Call

Students from any African Tertiary Institutions are eligible to apply. Send in your application to haginitiative@gmail.com giving reason(s) why you wish to attend the Seminar.

This event will promote not only healthy self-esteem and self-image, but also provide practical tools for overcoming many of the issues that affect today’s young girls such as:

Child Marriage

Peer Pressure

Purpose in life

Being different is okay and so much more!

We invite young girls, ages 18-24 to REGISTER for this fun-filled day.

Date: June 28, 2016

Venue: Methodist Primary School Hall, Oshodi, Lagos, Nigeria

Time: 10:00am till 2:00pm

These young girls are our future as such we encourage fellow Organisations to partner with us in making this seminar a true success and transform their lives. You can get involved by volunteering your time or making a financial donation to sponsor a young girl. We are confident that with your support, we will be able to watch their lives change before our eyes.

Our skilled and trained staff are so excited for the opportunity to interact with young girls. Please pass this invite along to anyone you know that might be interested.

This event is totally Free of Charge but strictly by registration

For Details, please call organizers on 08139743651

If you are passionate about girls’ empowerment, education and development, then you are eligible to apply. Limited spaces are available.

Register TODAY and take advantage of this great opportunity.