Unlocking funding & looking ahead: Q3 2023 Update
Dear friends, supporters, and donors of Lafiya Nigeria,
We are so excited to share that we are on an upward trend of growth! We are delighted to provide you with some updates on what has crossed our paths in the last few months.
1. Charity Entrepreneurship Incubation Programme
As mentioned in the previous newsletter, we have joined Charity Entrepreneurship’s Incubation Programme this summer. The programme has brought us new insights on how to scale our operations, has helped us to connect with changemakers around the globe, and most excitingly: we have a new Co-Executive Director to join our team! Céline Kamsteeg has gone through the incubation programme together with our Executive Director Klau. Céline has previous experience working in Kenya and Greece as a programme manager and head of fundraising in the non-profit sector. They are thrilled to now take up the executive directorship of Lafiya together. We are confident that this will allow us to fast-track our growth.
We are also very happy to announce that we have received $185,000 in funding from Charity Entrepreneurship’s network supporters. This means we now have the resources to provide 20,000 women with contraceptive access over the next year, which will more than double our impact relative to this past year. A heartfelt thank you for making this possible!
2. The Commonwealth Youth Award 2023
In September, our executive team was also delighted to have been recognised by the Commonwealth Secretariat. Our co-founder, Jefferson, received the Commonwealth Young Person of the Year award for the Europe and Canada region out of more than 1000 applicants. The award recognises excellence in development work done by youth within the Commonwealth, and was adjudicated by high commissioners and ministers from across the Commonwealth. We were pleased to have shared our work and vision with HRH Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, and plan to use our new-built network to further amplify our impact.
3. Joining the Federal Government in discussing the future of family planning
Last month, we were invited to join the Family Planning Technical Working Group, hosted by the Nigerian Federal Government and the Clinton Health Access Initiative, and attended by the key family planning organisations in the country, including USAID, Planned Parenthood Nigeria, and John Snow Inc. This is a true testament to the impact we have reached in the past years and a huge opportunity for us to contribute to the broader family planning landscape in Nigeria. We are beyond excited for the opportunities for connection that this will bring, and are ready to play our part in strengthening the collaborations between family planning organisations.
4. Our annual strategy summit
After welcoming Céline to our executive team, we held a two-day strategy sprint together with our in-country Nigerian leadership team, where we pinned down our strategic plan for 2024-2026. This has brought new inspiration and has reinforced our commitment to providing women at the bottom of the pyramid with agency over their reproductive choices. This meeting provided a good opportunity to look back on the impact we have achieved together over the last two years, as well as to make plans for the future. Our strategic priorities include scaling our operations further, connecting with other family planning organisations in the country, and prioritising our working relationship with the government.
We hope that this update highlights the exciting future ahead of Lafiya Nigeria as it continues in its mission to achieve equitable access to family planning in Nigeria. We remain extremely thankful to have you with us as we continue to grow throughout the months ahead.
Best wishes,
Klau, Céline, Dr Fatima, Jefferson, and Nasiru
