By Emeka Walter Dinjos
In Igbo land, it is believed that children born dada are of spiritual origin — the dark side — and are possessed because their mothers visited shrines and made pacts with deities to conceive them.
Relationship, health(physical and spiritual), religion, education and relevant items
In Igbo land, it is believed that children born dada are of spiritual origin — the dark side — and are possessed because their mothers visited shrines and made pacts with deities to conceive them.
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: I was privileged to
attend an all-girls boarding school in Warri, Delta State and on my return home
(Obiaruku), I realized that some of my classmates/schoolmates were not the
same. It's either they're pregnant and dropped out of school or just
constituting a nuisance in the community. I became concerned, angry as well.
I began thinking about
it, I believed that the counseling and guidance I was getting in school was
helping me make the right decision so after I finished from the University, I
decided to do something about it.
I remember I would
take courses on the YALI Network platform online and then go to Secondary
Schools to share with them what I had learned and the need to "dream
big". So that's how I started. I didn't even know the meaning of NGO then,
I didn't know what I was doing was " NGO", I just wanted a change in
my community, I wanted young people to have something to look forward to.
Something to spur them to do better.
Chinechendo's blog: Can I
meet you
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: I am Benedicta
Chukwuyem Apuamah (Uweru), a Bachelor of Pharmacy Degree Holder from Delta
State University. I am the founder, Girls for Development Goals Foundation and
Cofounder of Benny & Freddy Limited.
I have partaken of
over 6 social-impact programs representing Nigeria in West & East Africa,
Europe and South-America. These programs range from Chairing Model UN
Conferences to High-level meetings.
I have a dream of
working with the United Nations in the near future. I am ambitious
obviously, hardworking and friendly, I
believe in building networks.
Chinechendo's blog: I hope
it's not for the monetary gains?
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: I started out of
sheer passion to make an impact without even knowing the financial
implications. Now I know that bills have
to be paid for more impact to be done. Volunteers need to be motivated and even
staffs need to be paid. This is not for the monetary gains but of course we need
money to get things done.
Chinechendo's blog: How long
have you been into it
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: I started in 2016,
December to be precise just after I graduated from the School of Pharmacy, we
operated with the name "Girls Health and EducationFoundation . But we got
registered with CAC in December 2019 as Girls for Development Goals Foundation.
Chinechendo's blog: Who are
your Target audience
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: My target audience
is teenage girls, youths especially young women
Chinechendo's blog: Any
challenges so far?
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: Yes there have been
challenges. Part of the problem is because there are so many people who are
siphoning money with the guise of running an NGO hence making it difficult
sometimes for honest and passionate founders like myself to work. People were
afraid to give/partner because of their past experience so my team and I had to
work extra hard to prove our authenticity.
Chinechendo's blog: Who is
behind the funding
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: We have not received
any grants till date. We initially started with our savings and finances,
support from concerned individuals, family, and friends. Now we get support
from individuals from time to time who have seen the track record of our work
and impact and we believe this would improve with time.
Chinechendo's blog: What is
your plan for the project
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: Our plan is to grow
our projects to the point that they can be run and coordinated well in my
absence. We have already begun but there's still work to be done.
Currently, we have our Bloody Cup Campaign and Survey Project running in 6 States in Nigeria with 6 Community Based Organizations as implementing partners. These 6 States are representatives of the 6 geopolitical zones; Delta, Enugu, Lagos, Abuja, Kebbi and Adamawa.
Chinechendo's blog: Your plan
for the future?
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: I already shared
some of these in the previous question. We want to grow to be independent, run
projects, work with local and external donors. We are also working on our
startup company, Benny & Freddy Limited where as we stabilize, a percentage
of our income will go into the running of our NGO's project. So we're doing a
lot underground and really soon, you'd be hearing from us.
Chinechendo's blog: Any
regrets so far?
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: None none at all. We
are grateful for the mistakes we've made a long the way, we have learned from
them and they have helped us become better and stronger today.
Chinechendo's blog: Your
advice?
Benedicta Uweru Apuamah: When you have a
dream, chase it hard, this is like my own mantra. It's okay to get tired and
walk away but after a while comeback, wipe the tears and hurt and continue
working and before you know it, you'd have the attention of your world... You
can do it! For the teenage girls and even boys, your education is the best
thing you can give to yourself at this stage of your life. Take it seriously,
embed yourself in it, get the best out of it and then build on it.
Chinechendo's blog: Thanks for your time with us, do have a nice day.