Nigeria
Education & Health in Ebonyi State
Our commitment in Nigeria
In 2020, the founders of the German ‘HUMAN Foundation’ and the Nigerian organization ‘Holyrock Mountain of Light Church’ (with Pastor Richard Awah) signed a cooperation agreement. An agreement with Better Place Africa followed in 2022. Better Place Africa is operated by Melanie Facius (Board Member of the HUMAN Foundation) and her husband Divine. Better Place Africa will be the operative partner of the HUMAN Foundation in Nigeria for the further projects and is doing excellent work on site.
It all started with the idea of renovating a school in Afikpo North. This resulted in a number of other projects within two years, which will initially culminate in 2022 when the HUMAN Foundation won a social award. With the money from the award, we built a water factory that has been in operation since October 2023. Better Place Africa will also be the partner in this project.
On this page we go into more detail about the individual initiatives at the respective locations.
EDUCATION
We are renovating and operating schools, build toilets, a school kitchen and wells
PURE DRINKING WATER
We provide pure drinking water to avoid multiple diseases within the Community
MEDICAL AID
We care for people in medical emergencies who do not have access to a doctor
Students
School Building Renovation
People Clean Water
Family emergency aid
We are acting here
The situation in Ebonyi State, which was only founded in 1996, is roughly comparable to the situation in our projects in India. These are very rural structures, especially in our project location Afikpo North. The majority of the population works in agriculture. A high percentage of families live on a monthly income of around €40.
More than 150,000 people who are mainly farmers, fishermen and hunters, live in the Afikpo region. The topography is rocky and surrounded by many small streams that flow into a river that connects the village to the Atlantic.
The average life expectancy of people is between 55 and 60 years due to poor medical facilities and a lack of clean drinking water. The majority of our support measures are provided in the Afikpo North district with the “villages” of Amuro and Mgbom. 50,000 people live there. Some relief efforts are also underway in Abakaliki, the capital of Ebonyi State located about 70 kilometers north of Afikpo North, as our board member Melanie Facius lives there with her family.
A detailed description of all projects can be downloaded as a pdf file (see download button).
Afikpo
Pure Drinking WATER
The Context
There is no drinking water supply in the homes. People get their water from nearby ponds and creeks or rainwater from the roof.
Hardly anyone can afford clean water because the money is needed for food.
The Challenge
Many people become ill from contaminated drinking water. The biggest problems are typhus, kidney disease and gastrointestinal infections. Nobody can afford medical care either, so the children don’t go to school and miss a lot of learning material.
The Solution
We built a water bottling plant and clean the well water with filter systems. Thus, clean drinking water is made available to the people.
This eliminates many illnesses and people do not need a doctor.
Our Program
“puRE water for life” is the name of our large water project in the Afikpo governorate, which will be built in 2022 and went into operation mid of 2023. The approach is comprehensive.
First, a well with a depth of 80-100 meters was drilled. The water will be pumped up with a solar pump on a small photovoltaic (PV) system. We built a bottling hall with several sachet machines with proven filter systems. We are able to produce 20,000 liters daily. The sachet machines are supplied with electricity via a large PV system, so that the entire production is energy self-sufficient. Our mid-term target is to produce 3-4 million liters of drinking water annually, up to 15 % are given to poor families free of charge. The other 85% are sold to mini traders at a fair price to cover our annual operating costs. We employ in total 20 people and will provide both environmental and health advice.
Watch the video (duration 10 minutes). Recommended!
Amuro Mgbom
Modernization & Operations Morning-Starlight-School
(Afikpo North)
The Context
Afikpo North Governorate is home to a large population, especially young people.
Schools are generally very large with inadequate infrastructure, large classes, and few individual learning opportunities.
The Challenge
Many residents of the region cannot afford the €25-30 per year school fees for their children.
We try to help with this through specific sponsorships. Religion also plays a role in determining which school children attend.
The Solution
The church building of our project partner, Pastor Richard Awah, has space available. The Morning Starlight School was established there. We create a learning environment for up to 50 children where they can develop with fun and recognition.
Our Program
„Modernization and Operation“ of this small school is a worthwhile concept for us. There are three preschool classes and six elementary school classes. In addition to the school administration, nine teachers are employed. Many different subject areas are taught: English, mathematics, computer science, science, social studies, language comprehension, quantitative reasoning, basic agricultural skills, home economics, sports, culture, creative arts, science, civics, Christian religious education, music, and dance.
Why do we support this small school?
Amuro Mgbom
School-Renovation/-modernization & Operations
(Afikpo North)
The Context
The Afikpo North government district is one of the many “forgotten” regions of Nigeria where hardly anyone cares about the needs of the people. The financial resources of the schools are correspondingly similar. The teachers are therefore often demotivated.
The Challenge
The school complex for 1,700 students has existed since the 1950s. Some of the buildings are dilapidated, the toilet facilities have not been in use for many years. Sometimes 300 students are accommodated in up to 4 classes in one large room.
The Solution
In Nigeria too, knowledge is power and education is the key to success. With better training, young people can compete in the job market.
We are renovating a school, providing a reasonable infrastructure and running a small school.
Our programs
“Renovation of school buildings” is the fundamental basis for any other activites around this school. We want to approach the project step by step. The largest building, the so-called U-Block, was the first to be renovated for 50,000 USD and completed in 2022. The total renovation of all buildings will cost more than €200,000, with the extent of required renovation depending on the building.
“Modernisation of the school infrastructure” is an important aspect in addition to the renovation of the buildings. Beautiful buildings are worth a lot, but they lack important basic elements such as water, sanitary facilities, a decent school canteen, tables, chairs, computers, a playground and most of the necessary school and educational resources such as a library or equipment for chemistry, physics and biology classes.
„Further activities“ to renovate the school are fundamentally possible, but are not currently being pursued. This is due, on the one hand, to the lack of financial resources due to the large number of projects, but also to a wait-and-see attitude regarding how the renovated infrastructure will be maintained.
Unfortunately, we do not always have the best feeling with the school administration that sufficient funds will be provided for this.
We will review the situation in 2028.
Abakaliki & Afikpo
Medical Aid & Family Support
The Context
As always in such poverty-stricken areas, you really do not know where to start. There are too many people who need great help. Still, people are so grateful when someone cares about them and offers to help.
Every help counts!
The Challenge
Many families suffer from shortages: lack of water, food, clothing, education, housing infrastructure, well-paid work and therefore money. If someone becomes seriously ill, they cannot afford a doctor in the hospital. But we can only provide selective help.
The Solution
There are three approaches: medical emergency aid in critical individual cases, delivery of goods via Container transport from Germany and sponsorship of individual children. Due to the high administrative effort, the sponsorships are limited and exhausted.
Our programs
“Emergency medical aid”: In individual cases, it is about helping children or adults who are in severe need and usually die without medical care or experience great suffering in the long term in their life. This can be tumors in children, kidney diseases, severe burns, accidents, etc. Individual attempts are made to help and each individual case is financed individually. A very emotional and stressful task.
“Family support”: Many families lack the essentials. Be it cooking pots, cutlery, furniture, clothing or a cuddly toy for the children, small toys or school supplies. As a rule, a container is sent from Munich to Nigeria twice a year to send goods for a number of families, but also a lot of equipment for the school. We cannot pay the family’s living expenses, but in any case we can give them a little joy and somewhat improve their situation.
The film “Education and Health in Nigeria” shows all our projects in Nigeria in detail in moving pictures.
Enjoy watching it!
Quotes from important Projectpartners
I am convinced that miracles happen when people help each other. The last few months of the Corona crisis have made it clear to me once again how important it is to me to give children better opportunities.
As a very religious person, I am particularly inspired by a quote from Pastor Hannelore Frank: ‘If God wants to help and support us, if he wants to comfort, advise and encourage us, then he doesn’t let a miracle happen with lightning and thunder, but he sends us a man’.
Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the renovation work that I found when I started in 2022: 8 new classrooms, water supply, provision of chairs and marker boards that meet international standards and were officially inaugurated on May 28, 2022 in the renovated U-Block.
Like Oliver Twist I would like to make further inquiries…. The school has no physics, chemistry, biology classrooms and no library.
In the knowledge of the importance of the above, I therefore ask for your help in implementing the demands made for better learning by the students.
I believe children from less privileged homes are not supposed to suffer because their parents can’t provide for them. Quality education is a birth right for every child. The world will be a better place if every child is given the opportunity to be what he or she wishes to be.
One of the biggest problems in our work is the contaminated drinking water. The drinks here cause typhus, gastrointestinal infections and other bacterial diseases. Many problems could be solved with clean water.
The children are our future. We believe that the development of our children through education is our future. Our dream is to make our community a better place than we got to know it.
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