Economic Empowerment for widows in Agribusiness

To cushion the effect of the current economic hardship in Nigeria, on the 1st of April 2024, Foosteer Initiative in collaboration with Firstbank Nigeria and partnership with Gospel Faith Power evangelistic ministries supported 100 widows in Ajaokuta Local Government of Kogi State, Nigeria with registration and opening of New bank accounts for the widows, food stuff and cash donation for transport to and from the venue of activity.

The opened new bank accounts were credited with the sum of N10,000 each to help them startup a petty business trade.

The activity was conducted during the annual Gospel Music Concert of the ministry, titled "His Praise, His Presence, His Power.

The beneficiaries were full of appreciation and thanksgiving to God almighty for remembering them and prayers to the organization for greater heights in all its endeavours.

HPPP Live music has power to uplift attendee spirits and evoke feelings of joy and happiness. This year's event provided an opportunity for attendees to mingle and share positive enriching experience. The euphoric atmosphere of the music concert, left a lasting positive memories and emotions, relief stress, reduce anxiety and promote relaxation.

Feedbacks from widows who attended this music concert, indicated they found the event refreshing as it is a moment for unwinding.

Accelerating Rural Women's Access to Agricultural Market and Trade in Nigeria

Foosteer Initiative with support from Global Water Challenge (GWC) and collaboration with other partners is accelerating Nigerian rural Women's access to Agricultural Market and Trade.

The goal of the project is to empower 3400 vulnerable women farmers economically and socially, improve their livelihood and strengthen their business skills to allow them fully maximize their participation and benefit from agricultural markets and trade.

Specifically , this project 1. Assisted women to organize themselves in sustainable and effective organizations that can be used as a vehicle for social and economic empowerment.

2. Enhanced women's capacity to advocate for essential services that promote production in their established groups.

3. Enhanced their business capacity through business skills training production strengthening and market linkages for increase in their income.

Considering the fundamental importance of access to safe drinking water and sanitation services to well-being and healthy sustainable livelihoods, the project provides regular dissemination of WASH information to communities through radio, newspapers, community centers e.t.c

Worthy of note is Dissemination of WASH (Water Sanitation and Hygiene) information and the distribution aof hygiene kits across 100 schools in Oyo, reaching over 70,000 children as direct beneficiaries. 10 of this 100 schools are provided with 10 boreholes.

Target communities are: Oke-ado Northwest, Oke-ado South -west, Onara.

Provision of Solar Power System as An Alternative Clean Energy Sources in Adankolo Community, Lokoja, Kogi State.

This project "Provision of Solar Power System as An Alternative Clean Energy Sources in Adankolo Community, Lokoja, Kogi State" has 3 major components:- System 1, 2 and 3. System 1 focused on the installation of 10KW micro power system for powering productive use appliances and serve the solar lantern rental system charging station.

System 2: Focuses on 5 Solar Home System of 1kW each to power 5 Adankolo community points/facilities. System 3: Is the Solar Lantern Rental System (SLRS). Also included in the project activities is the community based advocacy and sensitization for climate change as well as formation of cooperatives in Adankolo to enable project sustainability and replication.

The project also encompasses the training of 500 indigenous Adankolo women on economic development and sustainable livelihood

and two days Training of Trainers for installation and maintenance teams, and end users introduction to pay-as-you-go solar system. The purpose of this activity is to increase knowledge, build capacity, strengthen institutions, and facilitate public-private partnership.

Capacity of 180 community youths (120 male / 60 female) and 7 members of 3 CBOs were built/strengthened on low-carbon technologies- solar system installation, introduction to pay-as-you-go solar system, how to get the most out of PV systems: how to balance loads and the benefits of efficient equipment.

Community Sensitization

On May 3rd, the Organisation "Foosteer Initiative " carried out an outreach in two rural communities of Ajaokuta namely Emi Adiko and Ikere, with focus on community sensitization on sustainable energy access, sustainable environment, health and well-being, and livelihood (skill acquisition) for marginalized population.

The outreach at Ikere community was open to the public with 50 adults (65% women and 35%men) in attendance . During the outreach, the 2020 beneficiaries of Foosteer Initiative's sustainable energy access program in partnership with Youngwomeninfarming shared feedbacks (testimonies) on the renewable solar lanterns given to them earlier in 2020 which has made life easier and improved their health and well-being particularly as it relates to their eye sighy. The Executive Director, Mrs Believe Obafaiye opened the event in English and there was an interpreter. This session lasted for about 45-60 minutes. At the end of this session, they were allowed to ask questions.

Thereafter Dr Faith Egharevba an optometrist (a volunteer with Foosteer Initiative) spoke on eye health, educating the people on good food needed for good vision, annuling myths about the eye e.g "garri blinds the eye", she categorically educated participants on hand hygiene, as this is the beginning of ocular hygiene. She specifically mentioned to participants to avoid the use of breast milk and urine for children's eyes, as this is bad and unhealthy to the eye. In conclusion, Dr. Faith emphasized on the use of good lighting system like the renewable solar lanterns, as this is very good for the eyes compared to kerosene lamps and candles they used before coming of the renewable solar lanterns. She also gave participants good reasons to visit an eye doctor. There was room was questions and answers segment. At the conclusion of the event, the participants were very excited and pleased to have learnt.

COMMUNITY SENSITIZATION IN EMI ADIOKO The second community sensitization and outreach in Emi Adioko community in Ajaokutahad community leaders and stakeholders, ranging from traditional leaders, religious and youth leaders in attendance. Emi Adioko is an agrarian community under Ajaokuta local government area of Kogi State, Nigeria. The purpose of the visit was to sensitize the community on climate change and conduct a community needs accessment. The community leaders welcomed the team and gave a brief history about their community. According to the community leader, the community has been in existence for over 100 years, and is one of the five communities who gave land for the construction of the Ajaokuta steel company. Community Needs Although the community suffer some form of marginalization, it has access to electricity and a primary school, their primary health care center is dilapidated and not functioning, the community has a hand operated borehole but was at the moment of our visit not dispensing water due to some faults in the pump, this has limited their access to clean water despite the fact that there is a lot of water under ground.

They pleaded if assistance could be given them, to enable them purchase an electronic operated pumping machine, and change the current system into an overhead tank, to enable them access to clean water all the time.

Foosteer Initiative's executive director educated the community leaders about climate change, specifically she stated one of the major root causes of clashes between farmers and herders is climate change, as places where some of these herders normally graze are now experiencing climate change, as such there is little access green vegetation for feeding their herds and as such, they are migrating southwards the mangrove areas, this and many more in no little way has contributed to the crisis of farmers and herders in Nigeria.

She encouraged community tree planting of economic trees, replacement of two trees for every one cut. She also introduced renewable solar laterns as an alternative to kerosene lamps. As the renewable solar lanterns helps to reduce carbon emissions into our environment, thereby making the environment safe.

The community leaders were full of excitement and thanked foosteer Initiative's team for the visit, and requested a future date be given to return for a Sensitization of the whole community members.

2020 Report

 

Its a great Joy to see the end of the year 2020. Although 2020 has been a challenging year for the world at large, along side its been a great transformative journey. For us at Foosteer Initiative, the year 2020 presented an opportunity for innovative approach to how we work; from our programme execution, stakeholder management, and beneficiary satisfaction.   We're ecstatic that you have been a part of our journey in a year as outstanding as 2020. Thank you for staying through with us despite all the challenges, we are pleased to know you are always here. Thank you for being part of our 2020 journey. Over the past two months, we engaged in community activities, town hall meetings and training sessions for Community Frontline Associates in the northcentral states in Nigeria, focusing on inclusion for women, Children and persons with disabilities. As a reminder, ​Foosteer Initiative's vision is "creating a future of hope for underserved women, children and youths in rural poor communities of Nigeria". Finally, as part of our end of the year "give to the needy" program, to support indigent families during the Christmas and new year celebration, we partnered with Gospel Faith Evangelistic Ministries on Christmas day 25th December to distribute food stuffs and clothing materials to 120 families in Ajaokuta local Government Area of Kogi State, Nigeria. SUMMARY OF OTHER ACTIVITIES IN 2020 As a result of your unwavering support, we were able to do a couple of activities, Here, we take you through our journey in 2020. We hope you find it inspiring. EDUCATION In February, we organized a "Band the beat Challenge" in Ajaokuta community of Kogi State, promoting access to equitable and quality education for the girl child. Our program "TheWatchersNG" targeted at vulnerable Nigerian children between the ages of 5-14 promoting access to low-cost equitable and quality education using Technology, particularly the Open Education Resources (OER) began a six months incubation with AccountabilityLab Nigeria, with support from MacArthur foundation. In March 2020 Foosteer provided 107 marginalized off-grid girls access to continued educational during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown using Open Education Resources powered by Renewable Solar Energy. Foosteer Initiative sponsored a six weeks Summer Reading Challenge organized by The Summer Reading Initiative for children between the ages of 8 to 18 years. From July 20th to August 29th 2020. The program which is part of Foostee's commitment to inclusive equitable and quality education was aimed at promoting the reading culture and proficiency among children in Nigeria. The event was held virtually, and as such gave 32 children from different states in Nigeria and 1 from UK an opportunity to participate in the online reading challenge, for both Junior and senior categories. COVID-19 PANDEMIC RESPONSE In the month of April and May, (peak of COVID-19 lockdown in Nigeria) Foosteer initiative conducted a door to door sensitization on COVID-19, providing 100 persons with facemasks and 20 households with food palliatives, to help ease the adverse effect of COVID-19 lockdowns on some of our beneficiaries. Also, Foosteer carried out a survey to find out the effect of COVID-19 school closure on parents and their children, and the report was used in engaging government in reopening the schools.  CELEBRATION OF NOTABLE INTERNATIONAL DAYS. Open Data Day On the 7th of March 2020, Foosteer Initiative celebrated the Open Data Day in collaboration with Open Heroines International, the event was used to promote women in Open Data, Civic participation and open government in  Nigeria, here is a link to the publication of our report by Open Heroines International. https://openheroines.org/promoting-open-data-civic-participation-and-participatory-budgeting-in-lokoja-nigeria-4bd7d6056573 International Day against Drugs and illicit trtrafficking On  the 26th of June 2020, Foosteer Initiative as part of its commitment to building a healthy&more just society, collaborated with YouthRise Nigeria on the 'We Are People' campaign to commemorate this year's international day against substance abuse and drugs by engaging actively with stakeholders and the general public in raising community awareness and sensitization about the health and right's needs of  People who use drugs, particularly those who are dependent. This was aimed at mitigating stigmatization& discrimination of people with drug dependence issues.   World Environment Day 2020 Foosteer celebrated this year's World Environment Day by participating in a webinar organized by French Embassy in Nigeria in Partnership with Niger Delta Snapshots. The theme of the webinar was unlocking the wealth of Mangrove Biodiversity for Local Communities. This was accompanied by a series of Social Media posts on commemoration of World Environment Day 2020. Energy Access and Climate Action Foosteer Initiative in Partnership with Young Women in Farming-YOWIF and support from Melaina Women Foundation in Neitherland, commenced implementation of Sustainable Energy Access Development Program SEADEP in off-grid ikere community of Ajaokuta LGA of Kogi State Nigeria,  providing off-grid rural women farmers access to clean, safe, bright and reliable solar energy for lighting their homes and small businesses. 250  households are current beneficiaries. In 2020, Foosteer initiative through bi-weekly dialogues and awareness creation, educated 2390 people in her community about climate change, and what to do, to mitigate its effects including trees planting, adoption of clean renewable energy and recycling practices.   You can connect with us on all our social media platforms below. As we look forward to a 2021 of more impact and achievements, we’re not only saying thank you for standing by us but we’re also wishing you and your loved ones a wonderful celebration season. Stay safe and Happy Holidays Foosteer Initiative Team   Ha