Orejesu Ajayi – Page 2 – In Our Hands Development Initiative

MEET MELANIE IDEHEN

MEET MELANIE IDEHEN, THE FOUNDER OF EUREEKA.

Melanie Idehen is a fifth year Medical Student at University of Benin and her greatest passion is bridging the gap between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’ with emphasis on access to quality health care . She is the founder of Eureeka; a medical research community poised to tackle Africa’s unique problems through research, scientific reasoning and innovation.

It is not only about the hospital for Melanie; she is a 2018 ONE Champion campaigning for Improved Health Care, Girls education and Gender Equality.

She is also the Program coordinator of the BIIG Girl Foundation, a faith based NGO centered on guiding secondary girls and female undergraduates in Benin on the path of self discovery and empowerment. Since inception, the BIIG Girl has impacted over 1000 girls through the BIIG Girl Conference, Secondary School Outreaches and The Naked Meeting ; which serves as a judgement free, safe space for young girls.

She also volunteers and coordinates health outreaches organized by Creation Care Initiative for the Less Privileged.

Melanie is an alumni of the Young African Leaders Initiative Regional Leadership Center (YALI RLC), West Africa and currently serves as the South-South Regional Representative of the Nigerian Alumni Body.

She is an intellectual powerhouse with several academic honors to her name. Melanie is a firm believer in girl power, breaking stereotypes and showcasing female excellence.

Keep up the good work Melanie!

We celebrate you now and always.

Orejesu Ajayi August 29, 2018

Social Impact

KENYA’S LET’S TALK CAMPAIGN

KENYA’S LETS TALK CAMPAIGN (TUONGEE).

This week on our Echoes from around the world, we will be kicking off with Kenya’s lets talk campaign popularly known as TUONGEE.

Gender-based violence has become a major threat to global development. According to the World Health Organization, about one third of women worldwide have experienced violence. There is an increased risk of HIV when the violence is from an intimate partner.

In Kenya, a recent study found that 32% of young women aged 18–24 years and 18% of their male counterparts experience sexual violence before the age of 18. Gender-based violence reduces the bargaining power to negotiate safer sex, stay on treatment or remain in school. In 2013, statistics gotten by the police service in Kenya showed that 3,596 defilement cases; 913 of rape and 242 of incest. The shocking part is that girls living with disabilities are not left out of this violence as the perpetrators do not allow them go scot free.

In other to end gender-based violence in Kenya, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), together with the Kenya Medical Women’s Association and the Kenya Women Judges Association, and partners, launched the Tuongee (Let’s Talk) Campaign on 25^th of May 2018 at an event hosted by Nicolas Nihon, the Ambassador of Belgium to Kenya and UNFPA.

Speaking at the launch, Michel Sidibé, the Executive Director of UNAIDS, said, “Gender-based violence and HIV are linked epidemics. If we are to deal with it, we must address the structural barriers that drive violence.” He spoke about the need to equip young women with the skills and capacities to make informed decisions about their health and underscored the critical importance of engaging boys and men early to change behaviors and challenge norms that allow gender-based violence to persist.

Written by Orejesu Ajayi

Source: UNAIDS

SOKODIRECTORY.COM

Orejesu Ajayi August 24, 2018

"echoes from around the world"

“ECHOES FROM AROUND THE WORLD “

“ECHOES FROM AROUND THE WORLD”

Hello everyone we are pleased to announce the latest addition to our blog

“ECHOES FROM AROUND THE WORLD “.

Here we will provide global perspectives on issues relating to Development, Gender Equality and Education.

Orejesu Ajayi August 22, 2018

"echoes from around the world"

Adebukola Olowoyeye

MEET ADEBUKOLA OLOWOYEYE,THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF GOLD MINDS LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE.

Adebukola Olowoyeye is a certified leadership coach, with a major focus on leadership, strategy and influence. He holds a Bsc in Business Management from the University of Ado Ekiti.

For him, starting Gold Minds Leadership Initiative which was founded in July 2014 was born out of curiosity and hunger for a better nation,To stand out with positive energy and to also change the mind set of those around from the regular negative comments and reactions from citizens as regards their country, to becoming part of the Africa’s solution. He has identified the biggest challenge in Africa which is LEADERSHIP and has decided to help the younger generation from high school level using different tools and topic ranging from teenage pregnancy awareness, drug abuse education and health related issues through his mental Re-engineering school projects across Nigeria.

Because of his passion, He has been able to team up with other professionals from lawyers to doctors to bankers and people from different ethnicity and religious background to help build a better nation and also be a solution to Africa’s problem.

In the first year, he started with a vision and he kept acting on those projects and sharing the vision with anyone who cared to listen without giving up. By the second year, he got it registered and his first support came from family and friends and since then they have been able to reach out to over 20 public schools in Nigeria.As well as start up branches in different parts of the world.

They also help students with financial issues by giving them materials such as mathematical sets, school uniforms, books, writing materials to help them through school. They give out leadership certificate to academically deserving students in all public schools that they visit, just to remind them that the society still rewards the values of hard work and perseverance.

We celebrate your great work and this is just the starting point!

Orejesu Ajayi August 20, 2018

Social Impact

OUR WCW IS CHIDINMA IBEMERE

MEET CHIDINMA IBEMERE THE CONVENER OF C.H.O.P.

Chidinma is a young lady currently working on a masters degree in Epidemiology and Medical Bio statistics from the University of Nigeria. She is a Youth Champion for ONE in Nigeria, which is a global organization with a focus on campaigning and advocacy .

She is the convener of Chidinma Ibemere Outreach Program popularly known as CHOP which started in 2016. CHOP has a mission to guide girls and children on the path of self development and by extension national development.

Since its conception, CHOP has had 19 outreaches in different communities with the aim of having a society where young girls move from being spectators to being relevant participants in the society .

Because of these outreaches, many girls have become more aware of the power and creativity that they are blessed with and they have been able to learn to speak up because they matter.

Chidinma is also a writer. For her it comes naturally as she most times uses her writing power to translate relevant to reality through images and words.

We celebrate you for your continuous work and impact in the development space. Keep soaring!

Orejesu Ajayi August 15, 2018

Social Impact

MEET OLUWASEUN AYODEJI OSOWOBI THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF STAND TO END RAPE INITIATIVE (STER)

MEET OLUWASEUN AYODEJI OSOWOBI , THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF STAND TO END RAPE INITIATIVE (S.T.E.R).

Oluwaseun Ayodeji Osowobi is a graduate of Development Studies from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. She holds a Master’s Degree in International Relations with specialization in Gender Studies from Swansea University, United Kingdom. She started her advocacy work by interning at the United Nations Headquarters, New York and Half the Sky Movement where she wrote articles on women, girls, children and social justice.

She is a 2018 Women Deliver, Rise Up for Change and Vital Voices Women Lead Fellow. Oluwaseun has worked as a project manager for Enough is Enough Nigeria (EiE). She is currently the Executive Director of Stand to End Rape Initiative (STER); under her leadership, STER Initiative won an award for the Best Use of Social Media by an NGO in Africa at the 2014 Social Media Awards, Africa.

Oluwaseun’s story is filled with pain, hope and survival. Having survived sexual violence, her story became a message for other women and a voice to her generation with a dedication to break the silence on sexual violence, help survivors speak up and ensure victims of gender-based violence can receive adequate and holistic support. She has dedicated her energy to a cause that seeks to ensure perspectives and narratives that contribute to gender-based violence, while enlightening our communities on the need to end gender inequality as a bedrock for violence against women and girls.

Her advocacy also touches issues on education, HIV/AIDS, Mental health, female genital mutilation and teenage pregnancy to name a few.

Did we forget to mention that through her hard work, she has bagged quite a number of awards among which is the 2017 Future Awards Africa Prize for Advocacy and fellowship and was currently named as one of the inaugural Obama Foundation Leaders Africa Fellowship.

Well done Oluwaseun Osowobi, We celebrate your strength and great work.

Orejesu Ajayi August 8, 2018

Social Impact

#MCM- MEET SAMUEL ONYEMACHI, COORDINATOR OF FIGHT AGAINST MOLESTATION (FAM)

Meet Samuel Onyemachi, The coordinator of Fight Against Molestation (FAM).

Samuel Onyemachi is a Teens/ Youth counselor/Life coach, a business developer/ Marketing expert and business consultant with the Principal of SENSE Leadership Academy. He is also the CEO of Psalmz Consulting .

He is a devoted Christian, a God crazy individual who sees Christ as his role model. He believes the love of Christ is what propels him to do all that he does and he has a vision to help people know Christ for themselves so as they can live the life he wants them to live.

According to him,

“The society we live in today, is one which has not been love oriented, so lust rules and the sexual desires of many has been awakened. Their urges having surpassed their humanity, puts the physical, social and mental lives of both the boy child and girl child at risk if they fall victim of these people.”

This was his driving force for the creation of FAM, which is to curb these practices before it becomes a culture, creating awareness, and assisting the victims through the process of rehabilitation.

He is one who in the last decade has been out in the field of life, trying to play his part in the building of humanity. He has been regular in private and public schools, churches and even on the street on a weekly basis reaching out to hundreds of teenagers with the message of hope, purpose, love and togetherness.

We celebrate you Samuel for your great work as a social impact leader.

Congratulations on being our #MCM for the week. Keep up the good work!!!!

Orejesu Ajayi July 30, 2018

Social Impact Uncategorized