As we try to put behind us the two-minute show of shame by the two-time ex-minister Femi Fani-Kayode in Calabar yesterday and the rancour between Governor el-Rufai of Kaduna and the NBA, Kwara provides a perfect relief.
Hannis Institute for Development Studies, a Kwara-based NGO is set to make a reality the national yearning for an educative, impactive programme for young adults to open their minds to the richness and possibilities in the countryside and how collaboration and unity of purpose is key to pushing for national development.
The CountrySide Emerging Leaders Fellowship (CELF) seeks to collect brilliant secondary school students across the 16 local government areas in the state and mentor them on life goals and leadership to broaden their exposure as emerging young leaders. What makes it unique is the broad selection method and duration of the programme. It is for two weeks. Two- week of learning values and skills and showcasing the knowledge acquired in a final community project. That is uniquely practical.
Truly we have all kinds of groups around dealing with teenage mentorship. But none has done something like this ever. A two- week camping fellowship for secondary school students is a first of its kind in the North Central if not in Nigeria. It is a reawakening that the stakeholders( governments, NGOs, CSOs, community leaders) must form an alliance in moulding the value chain of society. This is the legacy to hold dear.
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The Fellows upon the completion of their training in self- development, community development, and entrepreneurship, will form an alumni body to aid continual engagement and progress monitoring between them and the facilitators. This will be possible with the aid of phones they propose to give them on the final day. In addition, the outstanding Fellows will bag scholarships in their preferred course of study in any public university in Nigeria! They seek to forge a long value chain where young masters rub minds and facilitate opportunities for one another.
They propose to groom builders from within and amongst ourCELFS who will rise to raise their communities. It is such things we have been lacking which makes many youths go astray or mismanage their potential. It is such an initiative that restores the hope on a better Nigeria.
Yet as novel and fantastic the programme is, it worries me that CELF may not enjoy the publicity and moral support it deserves. Yes, we don’t have such a sweet history. Ordinarily, rich and well-to-do persons should rightly be falling on one another to feature on the right page of history. And, oh yes, I want this miracle to happen. It is an invaluable investment to support the NGO’s quest to impact the lives of future leaders. Philanthropists, journalists, and all other stakeholders should join in on the cause.
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As the Hannis Institute of Development Studies unveiled the maiden edition, my heart imagines the ripple impact on the state and Nigeria in the long run. It’d be a humble beginning but the nation would eventually be grateful to the organisers as the Fellows take the society by storm. It is my hope that we all join and support CELF now to help ourselves. Oga, support CELF to help Nigeria today. Be yourCELF an ambassador.
