As the world faces unprecedented social challenges, the role of young people in driving sustainable change has never been more critical. The Positive Inspiration Youth Action Café was designed to inspire Nigerian youth towards sustainable, community-rooted action, moving beyond the trend of seeking scholarships and fellowships as a means of escaping local challenges. The Lagos session of this cafe, held on the 16th of September, 2024 at the American Corner in Lagos, highlighted the the power of effective storytelling and also mainstreamed young Nigerian changemakers who exemplify purposeful leadership in their respective fields. With 24 young participants, the session provided an engaging platform for storytelling, dialogue, and the development of purposeful community initiatives.
A Story of Purposeful Change
The highlight of the event was the powerful storytelling session led by Nkem Okocha, the founder of Mama Moni. She captivated the audience with her inspiring journey from the corporate world to leading an impactful social enterprise, narrating the challenges she encountered with vulnerable and low-income women in Nigeria, that inspired her to found Mama Moni, a microfinance initiative aimed at economically empowering these women by providing business loans and training in economic skills.
Her social solution bridged the gap between underserved women and financial inclusion and currently connect thousands of financially underserved women to financial prosperity, offering them the a place to stand. Her story illustrated the power of staying rooted in the community and leading with purpose.
Key Learnings From Nkem
From Nkem’s story, we can learn that;
- Purpose-Driven Change: Impactful change often comes from recognizing a pressing community need and addressing it with long-term solutions.
- Commitment to Local Communities: Despite the opportunities to pursue personal business success, Nkem focuses on uplifting vulnerable women in her community, proving that local solutions can have global implications.
- Innovation from Grassroots Action: Nkem’s fintech platform demonstrates that impactful social solutions can emerge from understanding grassroots needs and building scalable innovations from there.
- Sustainable Empowerment: By providing women with economic skills and microloans, Mama Moni fosters not just temporary relief but long-term empowerment, leading to systemic change in communities.
Leading Purposeful Change: A Case Studies of Exemplary Leadership
The founder of DEAN Initiative, Semiye Michael, presented four case studies of young Nigerian change agents who exemplify purposeful leadership in their respective fields. These individuals have made significant contributions to community-driven change while maintaining a focus on local engagement through their actions.
Hamzat Lawal (Founder of CODE – Connected Development)
Hamzat Lawal is a passionate advocate for open data and government accountability. Through CODE, he launched the “Follow The Money” initiative, which tracks government expenditure in rural communities. Hamzat’s focus is on ensuring that marginalized communities have access to the information and resources they need for development. His work demonstrates how data-driven approaches can lead to tangible improvements in governance and public service delivery.
Key Insight: Leveraging data and technology can amplify the voices of the marginalized and create pathways for transparent governance.
Jennifer Uchendu (Founder of Susty Vibe)
Jennifer Uchendu, through Susty Vibe, addresses sustainability issues in a fun, engaging, and youth-focused way. She connects young Nigerians to the global climate conversation while promoting eco-friendly practices in their daily lives. Her approach makes sustainability more relatable and accessible to the youth, fostering a generation of environmentally conscious leaders.
Key Insight: Social change can be driven by making complex issues like climate change relatable and engaging to youth.
Seun Onigbinde (Founder of BudgIT)
Seun Onigbinde founded BudgIT, a civic tech organization that simplifies government budgets and public data, making it accessible and understandable to ordinary citizens. His work encourages citizen participation in governance by equipping them with the knowledge they need to hold the government accountable.
Key Insight: Empowering citizens through information democratization can significantly enhance civic participation and government accountability.
Nkem Okocha (Founder of Mama Moni)
Nkem Okocha’s work with Mama Moni was presented as a prime example of how local, community-focused innovation can drive financial inclusion and long-term economic development. Her commitment to addressing the financial needs of poor women in Nigeria has led to a scalable social enterprise model.
Key Insight: Deep understanding of local community needs can lead to innovative, scalable solutions that provide long-term, systemic change.
Key Takeaways From The Cafe
The Lagos session of the Positive Inspiration Youth Action Café provided an opportunity to reflect on the stories shared by Nkem Okocha and the case studies of the young leaders presented.
Some key takeaways include:
- Changing the Narrative: The key learnings of the cafe shifted young people’s perspective from using social impact work as a stepping stone to scholarships or fellowships to being inspired to view local change-making as an end in itself, rather than a means of escape.
- Empathy and Community-First Approach: The importance of understanding the struggles faced by local communities was a key takeaway. Young participants noted how empathy and commitment are crucial for sustainable change.
- Long-Term Commitment: The importance of long-term commitment to local issues, emphasizing that lasting impact requires sustained efforts, rather than short-term interventions.
The event concluded with participants expressing a renewed sense of purpose and a deeper understanding of the importance of staying rooted in their communities while striving for long-term impact. Through storytelling and case studies, young people were able to explore new approaches to local engagement and were motivated to rethink their motivations for social change.