By Innocent Anaba
A United States non-governmental organisation, NGO, Africa’s Children’s Fund, ACF, has called on government at all levels invest in the people, especially the children and youths, adding that it was the best way to alleviate the economic woes in Nigeria and Africa
It also called on Nigeria’s elite, corporate organisations and rich individuals to help families in Nigeria and across Africa to alleviate their sufferings through sponsorship programmes and donations to trusted NGOs to encourage poverty elevation.
Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Metro Atlanta based NGO, Mr. Victor Mbaba, in a chat from the United States, said he had seen too much to stay silent after listening to the pains in the voices of struggling families across Africa and the world.
The US-based entrepreneur and philanthropist, therefore, called on Nigeria businesses, churches, foundations, and everyday people not to turn away as many are living in difficult times.
Saying that most Nigerian elites including politicians were playing games with the life’s of the Nigerian child, the said: “The best investment we can make and be true to ourselves is to make sure that education is good, that hospital is good and investment in our people is the genuine way and not playing games.”
He said: “I have seen too much to stay silent. For more than 30 years, I’ve listened to the pain in the voices of struggling families, here in Metro Atlanta, across Africa, and throughout the Caribbean.
“I’ve seen children who want to learn but have no books. Mothers who work full-time but still sleep in their cars. Fathers who feel like failures because they can’t feed their families.
“This is the reality for thousands of people right now. And while the world debates the causes of our economic hardships, the needs of real people grow more urgent by the day. At ACF of Metro Atlanta, we’ve always believed in the dignity of every human being,” he stated.
According to Mbaba, while the organisation has done a lot to help the needy all over the world, yet a whole lot remains to be achieved, given the growing number of people that need lifting.
“We’ve walked with families through housing insecurity, educational barriers, and food shortages. We’ve helped children stay in school and parents get back on their feet. But we cannot keep doing this alone. This is my call to businesses, churches, foundations, and everyday people. Do not turn away. We are living in difficult times. Inflation, job losses, and rising rent have made it hard for everyone.
“But there are those for whom ‘hard’ means choosing between food and shelter; between medicine and school fees; between dignity and desperation and it is not just in the United States. Across Nigeria and many parts of the developing world, the face of poverty is even more harrowing.”
“Children are missing school not because they are unwilling, but because there is no money for books, uniforms, or transportation. Some sleep on empty stomachs every night and try to learn while fighting hunger.
“Sicknesses that could have been diagnosed and treated go unchecked. Pregnant women die from complications that a basic health centre could have prevented. Young lives are lost to avoidable conditions, malaria, infections, malnutrition, because help didn’t come in time.
“These aren’t just statistics. These are our children. This is our shared humanity. And if we are not moved by their suffering, we must ask ourselves what kind of future we are building. Giving is not about what we have in abundance, it is about what we refuse to withhold in times of need,” he said.
Speaking on his next plan of action to offer his contribution, he said on November 1, people with like minds will gather again for the annual ‘Evening of Hope for Children Gala’ at the Evergreen Lakeside Resort in Stone Mountain, Georgia.
He said every dollar raised goes toward keeping a roof over a child’s head and making sure a single mother doesn’t have to choose between paying her light bill and feeding her child.
“It supports children across continents who deserve the chance to live, learn, and thrive. If you’re hearing this and wondering, what difference can I make? I want to tell you: You are the difference. Whether you are a CEO of a major corporation or a retiree with a fixed income, there is something you can give, your time, your resources, your influence.
“We need partners who see our mission not as charity but as justice, who believe that no child should suffer because of circumstances beyond their control. We’ve done this work for over 30 years, not because it’s easy, but because it matters,” he added.
Mbaba, who has empowered over 230 families in Nigeria, appealed, as a father, as an educator, and as someone who has lived both sides of hardship and hope, to give whatever they can to help people.
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