My Journey with ActionAid Nigeria!

Nostalgia: This word comes to mind as I look back on my journey with ActionAid Nigeria - One I will not forget.?Settle down for a long but engaging read.

Act One: The stage curtain rises and reveals me walking into the ActionAid Nigeria Headquarters in Abuja on 20th September 2016, having successfully passed a rigorous interview process to become the Human Security in Emergency Officer. I was interviewed by the trio titans (as I called them): Tassallah Chibok (then Director of Programmes), Funmi Oyefusi (then Director of Organizational Effectiveness) and Gbenro Olajuyigbe (then Manager, Human Security in Emergency). If you know any or all three of them, you know how detailed and thorough they can be.

My job description was simple yet profound as it would directly change and impact the lives in the community, we worked in. I was to support the implementation of a project that had just started (the System and Structure Strengthening Approach Against Radicalization to Violent Extremism (SARVE) Project in Kogi State) with funding from the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF).

This seemed relatively easy but at the time, the state was notorious for an assortment of high-profile kidnappings, arson, armed robberies, violent extremism, and communal clashes. In fact, the baseline conducted at the beginning of the project revealed a high level of unemployment among youths, inequality, gender disparity, and lack of social cohesion. Consequently, youths in these communities were vulnerable to indoctrination into violent extremist groups.

Sharing borders with 11 other states made Kogi State unique, and yet, due to its porous borders, it was vulnerable to vices and crimes that filtered in from neighbouring states. Between 2016 and 2017, the State was generally considered unsafe and risky among road travellers. This led to the declaration of a state of emergency on insecurity by the State Government in 2017 in a bid to quell the incessant violent extremism and criminality. I think you get the picture now.

Following an intensive two-day induction when I resumed, I moved to my assigned base in Lokoja, Kogi State where I was hospitably attended to by the Partner team, Gift Omoniwa-Owonipa and an old friend Hamza Aliyu (ED, INGRA). Hamza was integral to my getting an apartment to live in.

I got to work, and I can proudly say that, through the SARVE project, I contributed significantly to the improvement of the state’s security architecture. I led the team in engaging with communities, security agencies, Government officials, religious leaders, and other stakeholders. In one of our community engagements, 120 youth denounced violent extremism and criminality, following confessions by some of them of being responsible for the frequent robbery along the famous Lokoja - Okene road). This denouncement in November 2017 contributed significantly to the low robbery cases along that route as against previous years.

I proudly steered advocacy efforts that led to the passage of the “Kogi Youth Development Commission Bill” into law. It is the first private member bill to be passed and signed into law by a seating governor and geared towards creating an enabling environment for sustainable youth empowerment in the state. This feat was accomplished by Rt Hon Ahmed Ahmed, who sponsored the bill and all the members of the Kogi Youth Advocacy Cluster (a youth network I created to push for the bill) led by Aminu Okutekpa.

I also supported the development of the “Kogi State Action Plan for Peace and Security of Women and Children” to promote the inclusiveness of women in preventing violent extremism and good governance.

An initiative we introduced in project communities for early warning and early response (EWER) system – the Community Action and Response Team (CART) initiative remains one of the most effective community agency systems in peacebuilding and advocacy for community development.

The successes we recorded on the project in Kogi State led to the approval for the second phase of the SARVE project by the donor and we extended the project to Nasarawa State in April 2019. There, we organized the first-ever peace fiesta in the state, domesticated the United Nations Resolution 1325 (Women Peace and Security) and 2250 (Youth Peace and Security), set up peace camps for over 1500 youth (500 per year), provided livelihood support for youth and women, and institutionalized the commemoration of International Women Day annually in March and Youth Day, annually in August.

At this time, my role evolved following another recruitment process, and I became the Resilience Programme Coordinator in Abuja overseeing Kogi and Nasarawa States.

SARVE II started in April 2019 and ended in December 2021. It was an impactful project with lots of success stories accompanied by life-changing tales from beneficiaries. The close-out events of the project were filled with mixed feelings as we had worked closely with 12 communities in Kogi State for 5 years and 12 communities in Nasarawa state for three years.

My project organised the first-ever National Conference on PCVE in Nigeria in collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in November 2021. That conference has since been seen as the leap that has spored PVE implementation and reporting in the country.

I also saw through the development of the first-ever M&E strategy for the implementation of the National Action Plan and Policy Framework of PCVE in Nigeria, at the instance of the Counter Terrorism Centre of the Office of the National Security Adviser.

With a 3rd round of funding from GCERF, SARVE III focused on Kano and Kaduna states in Northwest Nigeria. Within its first year, we established the necessary structures and aligned with all key stakeholders. Having won and implemented not one but two rounds of funding by one of the most thorough donors I know, I can proudly say that I demonstrated appreciable and acceptable programme management capacity.

Trying to tell the stories of impact on the various communities we engaged with in this article will not be sufficient as it would make this quite lengthy. I shall, however, include the links to the SARVE I, II and III projects that I led.

Now, it’s one thing to lead a project and yet another to have the right people to work with. My stay in ActionAid Nigeria was great because I had the best work environment and a wonderful team (the happy people) - I managed eight ActionAid Staff with two partners who demonstrated their capacity to deliver results and became family. I have been privileged to have fantastic line managers who gave support and room for innovation. Gbenro Olajuyigbe was my first line manager (until he left) he and Ipoade Omidirun (fondly called IPO) remain life mentors and fathers, David Habba my last line manager would become a brother, friend, and family.

As the curtain closes on my ActionAid Nigeria scene and I take a bow, I appreciate most profoundly, the Happy People Team (Past and present)- Nihinlola Ayanda, Peace Eneja, Friday Ogezi, Michael Oyinlola, Tope Omotosho, Aliyu Adamu, Cornelius Shija, Imaobong Edukere, Victory Idogho, Naomi Adamu, Kate Donatus, Chiedu Nwokolo, Adewale Mufutau. I celebrate and appreciate all you guys do and will continue to do.

I am grateful for all the mentoring, encouragement and support I received from my leaders and mentors: To Ene Obi (my Country Director and Grandma), Tasallah Chibok (Mama T), Funmi Oyefusi (FTO), Andrew Mamedu (the Star), Suwaiba Muhammad-Dankabo, Oluwole Elegbede, Collins Chinyere and Funmi Olukeye, thank you for your faith in me.

My ActionAid Nigeria journey lasted six years, five months and eight days - a rich experience. I reflect on how working with ActionAid Nigeria has shaped me into who I am in the development, humanitarian, and peacebuilding sector/nexus, today. I can boldly say I am a leading PVE programming expert in Nigeria with track records of success from the communities of interventions to providing support to the Federal Republic of Nigeria in PCVE implementation in Nigeria. Beyond this, my greatest joy and fulfilment is in the youth and women to whom we brought smiles and gave hope through livelihood empowerments and to the friends I have made on the way that would last a lifetime.

As I transition into a new phase in my career journey, I eagerly expect that my experience with ActionAid Nigeria will pivot me into more growth.

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for journeying with me in this article. Here’s to the next phase!