LEAD Camp Launch! #Day One

By Tobe Ifeanyi - July 15, 2016

July 15th marked the launch of our 6th Edition of LEAD Camp which kicked off with a press conference at The Limeridge Hotel, Chevron Lekki. Present at the event were Mrs. Ogochukwu Ekezie-Ekaidem, Head Corporate Affairs & Corporate Communications Union Bank; MD/CEO HOD Consulting Inc. Mrs. Simi Sanni Nwogugu; JAN Board Member Mr. Rufai Ladipo, CEO Agile Communications; JAN Associate Director of In-School Programs Ms. Adaeze Oputa and JAN Executive Director, Mrs. Efua Edeh.

There was ample press coverage from a wide variety of print outlets and television coverage from Ebony Life TV and Channels TV. The event kicked off at 10:30AM with a brief introduction about JAN from Marketing & Communications Manager, Ms. Tobe Ifeanyi who passed the baton to our moderator for the day Mr. Ladipo who kept energy levels high during the dialogue.

Our panelists shed a lot of light on the current state of affairs for the African girl child and African Woman who are the backbone of our society. JAN ED, Efua Edeh shared some compelling statistics to support the initiative to create LEAD Camp by stating" An increase of only 1% in girls’ secondary education attendance adds 0.3% to a country’s GDP". Imagine what Nigeria could be if we empower and nurture millions of girls across the country?

With the positive images of women leaders in the world today, our generation of young women are fortunate to have access to information and mentors through organizations like JAN to help bring their visions to fruition. However, none of this would be possible without the support of our stakeholders and the shared vision of donors like Union Bank.

Junior Achievement Nigeria believes in order to close the gap we have to connect those who would normally never interact in a joint learning experience as these young ladies hail from public/private schools and very diverse backgrounds. It's set to be a incredible bonding experience for these girls, especially as we live in a world now where a lack of communication leads to conflict.

The "fantastic fifty" are going to have the opportunity gain wisdom from women who have broken the ceiling in traditionally male dominated industries and participate in activities such as vision board creation, mind maps, emotional intelligence exercises, field trips, movie nights and slumber parties!

These are some our esteemed panelists and mentors for LEAD Camp 2016:

Bunmi Aboderin| Punch Newspaper
Lydia Otubanjo |Bella Naija
Joel Nwokeoma |Punch Newspaper
Adesewa Josh | Channels Television
Nike Oyetunde | Nigeria Info FM
Nkechi Eze | Bella Naija
Affiong Oviosu | Reel Fruit
Afua Osei | She Leads Africa. Org
Biola Alabi | Biola Alabi Media
Titilope Sonuga | Intel Corporation
Priscila Nwanah | Ebony Life TV
Moji Allen | ThisDay Style

Be sure to follow #JANLeadCamp for daily updates.

Left to right: Ms. Adaeze J. Oputa, Associate Director of In-school Programs, JA Nigeria; Miss Oyeni Rita & Miss Tijani Miriam, Aunty Ayo Girls Comprehensive Sec. School (Lead Camp 2016 participants), Mrs Simi Sanni Nwogugu, MD/CEO HOD Consulting Inc; School; Mrs Ogochukwu Ekezie-Ekaidem, Head, Corporate Affairs & Corporate Communications Union Bank; Mrs. Efua Edeh, Executive Director, JA Nigeria; JA Nigeria Board Member Mr Rufai Ladipo, CEO Agile Communications: Miss Adeniyi Enitan & Miss. Amogbe Idowu , Akande Memorial Snr. High School (Lead Camp 2016 participants) and Ms. Tobe Ifeanyi, Marketing & Communications Manager, JA Nigeria

Left to right: Mrs Simi Sanni Nwogugu, MD/CEO HOD Consulting Inc; Mrs Ogochukwu Ekezie-Ekaidem, Head, Corporate Affairs & Corporate Communications Union Bank; Ms. Adaeze J. Oputa, Associate Director of In-school Programs, JA Nigeria; Mrs. Efua Edeh, Executive Director, and JA Nigeria Board Member Mr Rufai Ladipo, CEO Agile Communications.

JAN Programs Manager Lagos, Mrs. Rita Odion, with LEAD Camp participants from Lagos & a representative from Aunty Ayo Girls Comprehensive Sec. School and Ms. Adaeze Oputa, Director of In-School Programs