There is no doubt that Nigeria is fast becoming a nation with a compassionate heart that seeks the genuine welfare of her citizenry even amidst the backbreaking and aching hardship that has seen needy Nigerians cry for help.

 

Although, few have embraced hardship as a way of life and have just a little glimpse of hope, while some again, every day, looking up to heaven like the biblical David for where their help will come from.

 

Luxury has thus become a far cry for these special people, a thick line between that man residing in a sky scrapper and that lowly who sleeps and wakes in the slum.

 

Joseph and Eunice Oladaiye Memorial, a heart-warming foundation in the city of Lagos, Lekki since 2008 has been around to give these sets of people hope and succour.

 

JEOF is passionately dedicated to the provision of support services to the less privileged and underserved children, youths, women and the aged people in the society.

 

It is in the light of this, the foundation’s core values which are social responsibility, empowerment, resourcefulness ,value addition,integrity,compassion and  enterprise are being woven into three which are educational development programmes ,healthcare improvement initiatives,community,youth and women empowerment programme to transform the society through its innovative community involvement, strategize to bridge the gap between the needies and the affluent in the society.

 

According to JEOF, education remains one of the most powerful weapons in fighting poverty, as no nation can grow beyond the knowledge base of its citizenry. At JEOF education is not viewed as a means to an end but a productive investment in the life of every disadvantaged and vulnerable child and youth to help them break the circle of poverty in their families, communities and the nation as a whole. Their educational programmes which indeed are still transforming lives include:

 

*Stay In School Programme; this includes full scholarship awards to orphans and vulnerable children and youths

 

*School Infrastructure Development And Teachers Training: Provision of a conducive environment for learning. The foundation also offers training to teachers to better equip them in handling the challenging academic needs of students especially in the areas of ICT.

 

*Read To Lead Library Project; Reading habit has drastically declined amongst students hence the availability of standard libraries where students would be inspired and challenged to learn.

 

Ordinarily, It is believed that health is wealth. A Truly healthy man will sure create a vibrant touch that will be a force to be reckoned with in his area of specialty this has also made JEOF undertake various health improvement initiatives ranging from primary and environmental health care services, provisions of first Aid equipment, running community and people-centered awareness health campaigns, malaria prevention, and treatment and some more. Meanwhile, in the areas in which the healthcare improvement initiative has been introduced, it has been recorded that the living conditions of residents as regards health has significantly improved.

 

The foundation further noted that the last of the three core values which are vocational and skill acquisition programmes cum youth engagement through sports and recreation development have seen both youths and women alike coming alive to this amazing life-changing initiative through the monetary benefits given to them through its microfinance scheme. Not forgetting the active engagement of youths to national development to promoting the culture of peace and enabling social cohesion.

 

Mr. Oladaiye concluded by giving kudos and acknowledging the power of unity of Sports, stating that sports all over Is widely known to capture the attention of youths and this advertently will help propel them to be greater productive,

 

Mr. Oladaiye did not fail to mention the very special projects which include visits to old people’s homes and community centers to provide support to the most vulnerable in the society and provision of support to the disables. The foundation has visited several orphanages most recent is the Heart of Gold Hospice, a home for children with disabilities in Lagos. Some of their impacts and achievements include: donation of essential educational materials to over 2500pupils of students of Ayebode schools in Ekiti State, donation of nutritional support to orphanages, Lekki, Lagos State, donation of wheelchair and other medical support for the disabled, promotion of sports and recreational activities to youths through the JEOF annual community football tournament with over 3000youths positively engaged and mentored, provision of potable water in the school environment across public schools in Ekiti State, Construction of a secured bus stop for transit passengers in the community, sponsorship of annual prize-giving ceremonies for students, teachers and non academic staff in secondary schools

 

In the bid to realize progressive results from NGOs across the country, Mr. Oladaiye  gave reasons NGOs should not be completely independent of the government  stating that NGOs are major contributors to the development processes and  many of which are determined by the relationship which should be cordial between the NGO sector and the state also stating further, he said  that whatever organization exists in a society operates within the stipulated rules of the government . As such the government regulates the operations of every organization for accountability and transparency.

 

He further noted that a healthy relationship is conceivable when both parties share common objectives, giving an instance that if the government’s commitment to poverty reduction is weak then NGOs will find dialogue and collaboration frustrating or even counter-productive .He, therefore, urged the government to be proactive to the needs of her people

 

With the philosophy Service To Humanity, indeed JEOF has made and still making its footprints on the sand of time and it is no small wonder that over 5000 lives have been touched and positively impacted.

As children’s plights increasingly escalate every day with perpetual groans and dismay and they seemingly feeling that all hope is gone, forever lost together with their comfort.

 

Rising from the phoenix from the ashes with blazing trail even as hope is rekindled and joy awakened, Arms of Comfort Foundation is thus leading and broadening the path of women and children to amazing choices and transformation leading many of them to make more sustainable goals especially on the part of the women.

 

More than seven thousand persons have been making resounding testimonies on the great graces they have benefited from this foundation that has given them value and true identity.

 

Arms of Comfort Foundation a charitable organization in the city of Lagos saw the need in 2006 to stretch forth its helping hands to the society.

 

The president of the foundation Mrs. Toyin Atilolari Afolabi who envisioned that every woman and child’s needs should be met by all means had the burning desire to ensuring that the dream sees the light of day.

 

Noting some of the foundation’s achievements, The Executive Director Mr. Kolawole Afolabi Sam Adeboye said that arms of comfort have indeed been extended to the poor,especially the women and children orphaned by various situations and circumstances in the society through the provision of rehabilitation and educational opportunities with a strong operational presence in Lagos and Ogun states in  South-West of Nigeria cum provision of microcredits, skill acquisition, scholarships,upkeep programmes and as well as counseling.

 

AOCF, Mrs. Afolabi said that she has been involved in the implementation of  ACCORD (Assistance and Care for Children Orphaned and at Risk) Project, which was sponsored by USAID through Hope Worldwide Nigeria from January 2011 to July 2013, in seventeen communities in Lagos State. Within this period, she stated that AOCF was able to serve a total of 7,522 vulnerable children from 2387 households.

 

Meanwhile, from February 1st to date, AOCF has been involved in a life-changing project as an implementing Civil Society Organization in the ARFH LOPIN-a project sponsored by USAID. The project which is tagged as LOCAL PARTNERS ON ORPHANS AND VULNERABLE CHILDREN IN NIGERIA (LOPIN) is meant to run for five years and implemented in Kosofe LGA, and other relevant stakeholders in the community continue to be partners, concluded the Executive Director.

Due to the large population percentage of delicate gender, the health of women and children has thus become vital to creating a healthy world. Despite great progress recorded in this particular healthcare, there are still too many mothers and children dying mostly from causes that could have been prevented. Every day, approximately 800 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy, childbirth and HIV/AIDS. 99% of these deaths occur in developing countries while developed countries are on top of the game.

 

Beyond some of these issues being confronted by some particular environments, is critically analyzing if changes are often welcomed, appreciated and embraced.

 

Such is Biire Child and Maternal Foundation‘s testimonies which are being resounded through their numerous impacts particularly on women and children, while benefactors, relentlessly have continued to sing this NGO’s praises, commending them of the outstanding impacts they have made in the society. It has however been noted that NGOs’ regardless of the level of their impacts on the society always crave to do more selfless services.

 

Biire Child And Maternal Foundation a  registered and established in 2006 in response to the fight against HIV/AIDS  with particular focus on Maternal and Child  Health, aims to prevent of mother to child transmission as entry care and support to people living with  HIV and affected by HIV/AIDS including children.

 

According to Dare Ajayi, the executive director of the Biire foundation, HIV/AIDS is a major threat to Africa’s social, political and economic development, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. In Nigeria, it accounts for the leading cause of child & maternal mortality. The current figure reveals that over3millionpeople currently live with  HIV&AIDS,  making  it  the  country  with  the second-largest  number  of  People  Living  with  HIV/AIDS

 

To address these challenges, Biire and partners are currently carrying out high impact prevention, care and support intervention to reduce HIV  infections and to help support those adversely affected by using combinations of scientifically proven,  cost-effective and scalable interventions targeted at the right population which aims to reduce the impact of the disease. More importantly, he said that Biire’s aim is to foster general understanding of HIV/AIDS and hoping to prevent further infection.

 

In addition to so many other impacts, the executive director also made mention of the provision of a continuum  of comprehensive care comprising of nursing care, access to drugs, counseling and psychosocial support for the patients. There is also the provision of care  &  support  to  orphans  & vulnerable  children  by  facilitating education, good nutrition, counseling, healthcare, income-generating activities, HIV/AIDS education and also providing HIV/AIDS information to indigenes of rural areas

 

Mr. Dare also noted that Biire has been able to conduct home-based and mobile  HIV  testing through outreach programs using test kits in both urban and rural areas. He reiterated that due to the stigma still associated with HIV/AIDS, people are still very much reluctant to go for tests hence the need for this confidential test, he concluded.

 

Recognizing the importance of the Millennium Development Goals, Mr. Ajayi noted that there was the need for the foundation to integrate these components into its work which include: monthly Community Health Initiative which has helped in providing much needed medical care and nutritional support to hundreds of pregnant women, community  health fairs, HIV/AIDS awareness, campaigns, provision of medical and legal support for(PLWHA)and eradicating extreme poverty and hunger through its School Feeding Program.

 

The Executive Director did not fail to note that one of the key factors that also served as awareness and sensitization are the FELABRATION EVENT and THE LAGOS AIDS WALK. These two  platforms which  seek to advocate  for increased  political  will  and  corporate  support  for  HIV prevention, treatment, care, support and raising funds for Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission of  HIV(PMTCT)campaigns; and finally a progress  towards  international  goals  of  universal  access  to  HIV  Counseling  and testing HCT services, Mr. Ajayi pledged the action will be a non-stop advocacy.

 

As these impacts toll continue to rise, the Biire Foundation with full force and relentless efforts pledges to continually rise to the rescue of several HIV/AIDS patients in the society and ensuring their plights are alleviated.

The plight of widows around the world reveals that there are an estimated 245 million widows worldwide, 115 million of who live in poverty, suffer from social stigmatization and economic deprivation purely because they have lost their husbands; according to the research presented to UN Secretary-Gene ral Ban Ki-moon on June 22^nd, 2010.

 

In Nigeria, today, the phenomenon of widowhood is yet to be understood, across different cultures in Nigeria, there exist harmful traditional widowhood practices which have attracted the attention of the global struggle in general on violence against women. Sufficient evidence suggests that widowed women are severely affected financially, psychologically, sexually and socially and these are rooted in cultural and traditional practices as well as the socialization processes that condition women to dependence. These conditions have erected enormous difficulties for women to creatively initiate new robust relationships with both men and women in social and economic spheres upon widowhood. The debilitating conditions of women are worsened by societal factors that instrumentally feed into the situation ranging from loss of livelihood and the fact that widows are less likely to remarry than widowers. Widows rather than sympathized with are more often subjected to near inhuman treatment in traditional ritual rites and practices such as solitary confinement, defacement, disinheritance and a relatively long mourning period of limited socio-economic activities. The most obvious effects are deepening poverty, acute stress, depression, loss of identity and self-esteem. The widowhood conditions expose women to psychological and physical abuse as well as a whole range of health-related problems With these ranges of woes and some more befalling widows, spurred Advocacy for Widows’ Empowerment Foundation (ADWEF) in 2012 to come protect and advocate for human rights cum discovering and nurturing hidden entrepreneurial skills and providing a voice as a platform for action upon the concerns of widows.

 

Willie Workman Oga, founder of ADWEF said that the foundation’s roles in ensuring an assured life for the widows are in no small measure and that they very well include – educating widows on their basic human rights, cooperating with existing NGOs to educate men on the need to write their wills early in life and make their wives their next of kin in all insurance, employment and banking document in order to ease the accessibility of funds for use of their family in instances of their deaths and sourcing for funds through sponsorships and donations for the training of 100 widows annually. ADWEF also empowers trained widows to establish their own businesses, monitor their progress and also go all the way to celebrate widows who have excelled in their chosen fields.

 

Mr. Workman listed four main initiatives that are meant to train a hundred women yearly, which include; ADWEF WIDOWS EMPOWERMENT which is designed for the training and empowerment of widows between the ages of 25 – 60 years of age whom for whatever reason decided not to remarry since they lost their husbands.

 

The second initiative, he gleefully recounted in the FUNDRAISING and CHARITY 4 WIDOWS’ GRUV has always been a dinner-like event, which comes in as a concert and award night, solely designed to raise funds for the widows.

 

The third which is ADWEF SUMMIT ON WIDOWHOOD AND EMPOWERMENT is aimed at creating public awareness, sensitizing the society through speakers from the legal and medical professions about the plight of Nigerian widows and proffering solutions in form of communiqué to the government to legislate on it and reform existing laws that protect the fundamental human rights of widows,

 

The very last one, ADWEF HEALTH CHECKS 4 WIDOWS is a medical outreach event designed to enable widows to know their health status and at the same time issue medical advice that will enhance health and other related issues.

 

After all, said and still actively doing, Mr. Oga concluded that ADWEF will never relent in this core service to humanity to bringing the sorrows of widows in his community and beyond six feet beneath.

On a stormy evening when the lights go out and eyes could not adjust to the darkness, one learns what it means to live with a partially distorted vision. Following sounds and relying on touching of objects, one might just for the very first time have firsthand experience with utter darkness.

 

285 million people are estimated to be visually impaired worldwide, 39 million are blind and 246 have low vision. About 90% of the world’s visually impaired live in low-income settings. 82% of people living with blindness are aged 50 and above. Globally, uncorrected refractive errors are the main cause of moderate and severe visual impairment while cataracts remain the leading cause of blindness in middle and low-income countries. In the UK, there are almost 2 million people living with sight loss. Of these, around 360,000 are registered as blind or partially sighted.

 

There is an estimated 9 million blind in sub-Saharan Africa and a further 27 million people are visually impaired. According to estimation, one percent of all Africans are blind.

 

According to the Federal Ministry of Health, 42 out of every 1,000 Nigerians aged 40 and above are visually impaired and as for the

 

On a stormy evening when the lights go out and eyes could not adjust to the darkness, one learns what it means to live with a partially distorted vision. Following sounds and relying on touching of objects, one might just for the very first time have firsthand experience with utter darkness.

 

285 million people are estimated to be visually impaired worldwide, 39 million are blind and 246 have low vision. About 90% of the world’s visually impaired live in low-income settings. 82% of people living with blindness are aged 50 and above. Globally, uncorrected refractive errors are the main cause of moderate and severe visual impairment while cataracts remain the leading cause of blindness in middle and low-income countries. In the UK, there are almost 2 million people living with sight loss. Of these, around 360,000 are registered as blind or partially sighted.

 

There is an estimated 9 million blind in sub-Saharan Africa and a further 27 million people are visually impaired. According to estimation, one percent of all Africans are blind.

 

According to the Federal Ministry of Health, 42 out of every 1,000 Nigerians aged 40 and above are visually impaired and as for the Nigerian Optometric Association (NOA) Lagos branch, more than one million Nigerians are completely blind while three million are visually impaired

 

There is an old Hebrew proverb that believes the blind were the most trustworthy sources for quotations. It has also been reported that the blind have the best memory.

 

Information on a visual impairment that cannot be treated can be difficult to come to terms with. Some people go through a process similar to bereavement, where they experience a range of emotions including shock, anger, and denial before eventually coming to accept the condition.

 

Visual impairment does not equate to the complete loss of vision. In fact, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 15.88% of people who are visually impaired, face total darkness or are blind. The remaining 84.12% have a partial or residual vision, like color perception, light perception, movement or even form perception. They may be able to see in blurs or varying degrees of distortion, with literal blind spots in some areas.

 

The visually impaired possess several traits, some of them include; constant communication using normal language, responsiveness to the environment as any human, more nightmares than sighted people, color comprehension in unique ways, open curiosity about life and not all of them actually use a cane to navigate to learn more about their world.

 

Hope restored and joy rekindled for the visually impaired, Society for The Welfare of The Blind (SWBN) in 1990 resolved to care and addressing the developmental needs of the blinds in Nigeria, a need hinged on a fact that the blinds have been marginalized for far too long.

 

SWBN in 2012 through her visions, provided opportunities to the visually impaired, ensuring that inadequacies and shortcomings which for several years made their lives uncomfortable, meaningless and purposeless were reduced to the barest minimum.

 

SWBN has been able to advance their total wellbeing by providing reading materials in Braille which would help them live independently. In addition to the impacts are; successful production of textbooks in Braille to Federal Government College, Ijaniki, Lagos; Queen’s College, Sabo Yaba and St Gregory’s College. Construction of Zebra- crossing signpost at Cappa bus stop Agege Motto road, Mushin Lagos to minimize the frequent occurrence of blind people being knocked down.

 

The Executive Director, Tade Eniloa Ladipo recounted that on November 14^th, 2012 SWBN visited Iyewa College and presented a Braille machine donated by Exxon Mobil to the visually impaired students of the school.

 

She concluded that the provision of grants to aid educational and vocational aspirations of some blind students in her community together with the construction of the blind library will go a long way in lighting up the dark tunnels of the visually impaired in her community.

 

(NOA) Lagos branch, more than one million Nigerians are completely blind while three million are visually impaired

 

There is an old Hebrew proverb that believes the blind were the most trustworthy sources for quotations. It has also been reported that the blind have the best memory.

 

Information on a visual impairment that cannot be treated can be difficult to come to terms with. Some people go through a process similar to bereavement, where they experience a range of emotions including shock, anger, and denial before eventually coming to accept the condition.

 

Visual impairment does not equate to the complete loss of vision. In fact, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 15.88% of people who are visually impaired, face total darkness or are blind. The remaining 84.12% have a partial or residual vision, like color perception, light perception, movement or even form perception. They may be able to see in blurs or varying degrees of distortion, with literal blind spots in some areas.

 

The visually impaired possess several traits, some of them include; constant communication using normal language, responsiveness to the environment as any human, more nightmares than sighted people, color comprehension in unique ways, open curiosity about life and not all of them actually use a cane to navigate to learn more about their world.

 

Hope restored and joy rekindled for the visually impaired, Society for The Welfare of The Blind (SWBN) in 1990 resolved to care and addressing the developmental needs of the blinds in Nigeria, a need hinged on a fact that the blinds have been marginalized for far too long.

 

SWBN in 2012 through her visions, provided opportunities to the visually impaired, ensuring that inadequacies and shortcomings which for several years made their lives uncomfortable, meaningless and purposeless were reduced to the barest minimum.

 

SWBN has been able to advance their total wellbeing by providing reading materials in Braille which would help them live independently. In addition to the impacts are; successful production of textbooks in Braille to Federal Government College, Ijaniki, Lagos; Queen’s College, Sabo Yaba and St Gregory’s College. Construction of Zebra- crossing signpost at Cappa bus stop Agege Motto road, Mushin Lagos to minimize the frequent occurrence of blind people being knocked down.

 

The Executive Director, Tade Eniloa Ladipo recounted that on November 14^th, 2012 SWBN visited Iyewa College and presented a Braille machine donated by Exxon Mobil to the visually impaired students of the school.

 

She concluded that the provision of grants to aid educational and vocational aspirations of some blind students in her community together with the construction of the blind library will go a long way in lighting up the dark tunnels of the visually impaired in her community.

A foolish nation ignores them at its own peril. They are street children. They roam the garbage-filled street of even the developed nations and abound in thousands in most cities of many third world countries. They represent the face of hunger, insecurity and social neglect. Nigeria is no different; they roam in their thousands, portraying the decadent social order.

 

Nigerians are more aware than ever, tragedies faced by children on the streets; national and local media forever carry daily reports of children who have been beaten, imprisoned, starved, burned, sexually and emotionally abused. Globally, there are an estimated 100 million children living on the streets today.

 

There are no known statistics for street children in Nigeria, however, it was estimated that children of under 18 years of age made up nearly 48% of the estimated country’s population of 120 million in 1996 (World Bank). This estimate remains undiminished with the passage of years, a rather appalling fact.

 

Humanity is however slowly awakening to a fact that even if the authority does not wake up to its duty then those who have made it a mandate as a social responsibility will arise to the call to serve.

 

From planning to monitoring through long term training and mentorship of these very delicate children, Fair Life Africa Foundation, established in Jan 2011 with the sole aim of operating through the establishment of social initiatives to alleviate oppression, envisions a just and equal society by empowering people for a fairer life.

 

Mrs. Uforma Emerhor, the founder of FLA, has very strong unshaken faith in children, she believes that they are gifts from God and as such must be given utmost care rather than abandoned.

 

The Executive Director elaborated on Care Continuity Challenge, an initiative meant to support children, who had made the streets home, to be reconciled with their families.  The three names represent three stages. Care is about reaching out and showing love by providing basic necessities; Continuity is about securing stability for each child, through reconciliation; while Challenge addresses the long term needs of the child, who cannot be reconciled.

 

The second initiative, she said is a Disadvantage to Advantage (D2A). The focus is taken away from rehabilitation to enhancement, as children between ages 9-17 are targeted with the aim of adopting them until they become mature and independent to stand unsupported.

 

Announcing FLA’s long term plans, with sheer delight Mrs. Emerhor believes that the foundation in another five years would have made more impacts on 150 children by constructing charity shops, leasing three workshops to vocational trainers who will provide free services to the children and constructing poultry farms, an added vocation, which would serve as a source of food and income for the children.

 

When asked if NGOs can completely be independent of the government, Mrs. Emerhor said “I don’t believe we can or should be completely independent of a ‘good government’!  That is, if the government is doing what it should, it should seek to be involved in and support our efforts in building an equal and just society. A government that leaves us to our own devices and depends on us to do what they should be championing is not doing enough, and in such a climate, it does make sense to work without their intervention, because that would be the only and best way to operate!” She concluded.

In the world of fiction, rapists are evil, nasty and scruffy-looking, they lurk in bushes or the shadows of the parking garage ready to fall on their prey and pray the would-be victim envisages this speedily and gets rescued promptly prior the vicious attack.

 

Oftentimes actual rapes leave forever scars on victims, totally rubbing them of their self-worth and making them feel less important amongst their families and in the society.

 

The recent upsurge in the cases of rape, especially against girls, women and old women, has become worrisome for not only parents but policymakers as well.

 

According to an online report, 80 – 90% of rapes are never reported. In many parts of the world especially in Africa including Nigeria, it is most difficult to estimate rape occurrences as it is rarely reported due to the extreme social stigma which accompanies the fear of being disowned by families.

 

Rape, according to Wikipedia is “a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without the person’s consent. The act may be carried out by physical force or coercion.

 

Nigeria, under the Criminal Code, says the punishment for rape is life imprisonment, unfortunately, it is yet to be enacted.

 

Several inactions to bringing rapists to book spurred the kickstart of Walk Against Rape (WAR) a foundation based in Lagos, established in 2010 by Esther Ijewere-Kalejaiye. The foundation was designed to give a voice to sexually abused persons especially women and children, readily giving succor, WAR also will eradicate the scourge of rape in Nigeria where its number is reportedly on an alarming rise.

 

The National Coordinator envisions channeling the foundation as a tool and catalyst to informing the society about the soaring scourge of rape and encouraging victims to speak out such that stigmatization might finally go into extinction.

 

According to Mrs. Ijewere-Kalejaiye, she said that the yearly editions of Walk Against Rape constantly receive ovations from the Lagos State Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation. She stated that the Lagos State Government is ready to make more Help Centers across the state available, preferably in all Local Government Areas.

 

Meanwhile, Walk Against Rape Campaign which holds every year, she stressed is a special demonstration to lending a voice to sexually abused persons (particularly women and children), and supporting the course of bringing an end to RAPE in Nigeria.

 

She emphasized the need for victims to open up and seek help since the experience leaves them with the feelings of being used, miserable, ashamed and utterly frustrated.

 

The negative stigma associated with rape victims prevents many from seeking medical attention. Rape victims are exposed to Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), unwanted pregnancy and genital injuries. A thorough medical evaluation is necessary in all cases of sexual assault even if victims have no apparent injuries, she concluded.

 

On impacts and achievements of the foundation, Mrs. Ijewere-Kalejaiye said a three month sensitization workshop: College Acquaintance Rape Education (C.A.R.E) in partnership with the Lagos State Government and the Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team (DSVRT) has been organized for young people of Secondary and Primary school age which kicked off on the 18th of February 2015 was meant to educate, sensitize and encourage girls to speak upon all issues related to rape.

 

Mrs. Ijewere-Kalejaiye, therefore, urged the government not to trivialize on the crime but to come out with appropriate punishment to offenders, which would serve as a deterrent to would-be offenders and in turn, serve as succor to victims.

Until the mid-1930s, when the first commercial yeast-extract vitamin B complex and semi-synthetic vitamin C supplement tablets were sold, vitamins were obtained solely through food intake and changes in diet (which, for example, could occur during a particular growing season) usually greatly altered by the types and amounts of vitamins ingested. However, vitamins have been produced as commodity chemicals and made widely available as inexpensive semi synthetic and synthetic-source multivitamin dietary, food supplements and additives.

 

The term vitamin is derived from the words vital and amine; vitamins are organic compounds that are needed in small quantities to sustain life. Today, thirteen vitamins are universally recognized.

 

Approximately 250,000 to 500,000 malnourished children in the developing world go blind each year from deficiency of vitamin A, half of whom approximately die within a year of becoming blind with the highest prevalence in South East Asia and Africa. VITAMIN A Deficiency (VAD) is thus estimated to affect approximately one-third of children under the age of five around the world and estimated to claim the lives of 670,000 children under five annually. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), VAD is under control in the United States, but in developing countries, VAD remains a significant concern.

 

According to Nigeria’s statistics provided by the World Health Organization, 29 percent of preschool-age children are vitamin A deficient which has made WHO classify VAD as a severe public health problem in Nigeria. Vitamin A deficiency (VAD)a lack of vitamin A in humans is critical to achieving the Millennium Development Goal 4: To reduce the child mortality rate. Although more than 33 million children received VAD during the biannual Maternal Neonatal Child Healthcare (MNCH) week campaign organized by Federal, State, and Local governments. To date, there are several millions of children in need of vitamin A in Nigeria.

 

Obeying the clarion call to children’s plight, Vitamin Angels go to the hard to reach communities in Nigeria, giving in-kind grants of Vitamin A supplements and chewable albendazole to qualified Non-Governmental Organizations who deploy micronutrients through existing health and community based programs to children less than 5 years of age who are at risk of vitamin A deficiency (VAD).

<br?

Abiola Akanni, Nigeria’s programme manager of Vitamin Angels said that Vitamin Angels currently works with 45 countries with a network of over 300 NGOs to deliver vitamin A to more than 30,000,000 children less than five years of age.

 

The deficiency which is a major contributing cause of sickness and death among children under five years of age, aside from the common causes as measles, diarrhea, is the Nyctalopia (night blindness) which is one of the first signs of VAD. A simple cost-effective dose of vitamin A every six months alleviates VAD and reduces mortality and morbidity by 24% in children under five years.

 

In 2014, Vitamin Angels gave grants to support grassroots NGOs in alleviating micronutrient deficiency in Nigeria, supporting health clinics, eye hospitals and orphanages for the purpose of incorporating sustainable micronutrient distribution programme to children under the ages of five who reside in hard to reach communities.

 

Vitamin Angels make vitamin A and chewable deworming tablets accessible to young children under 60 months of age and children who were missed by health providers.