We are on a Mission
With a clear vision to improve lives and build sustainable societies where energy equality and efficiency exist for all, we set out in 2022 to impact a significant number of beneficiaries directly and indirectly through our strategic programs and social interventions.
A note from the Board Chair
In 2022, Sahara Foundation continued its mission to further promote the development of sustainable environments and increase access to energy across our host communities in Africa. With a clear vision to improve lives and build sustainable societies where energy equality and efficiency exist for all, we set out in 2022 to impact a significant number of beneficiaries directly and indirectly through our strategic programs and social interventions.
In 2022, our Sahara ‘STEAMers’ program, which is a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) initiative in partnership with STEMCafe engaged with 150 secondary school students from Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda. The participants who were divided into groups of four and five each, were trained with the skills and tools they need to become confident and creative social innovators capable of identifying and solving prevalent problems in our society. An outcome achieved, as we saw the larger percentage of the students during the final demo day presentations showcase extreme confidence as they presented their great innovative solutions – aimed at solving prevalent problems across important sectors in society, such as security, education, health, and agriculture.
Through our Sahara Impact Fund Fellowship program, we continued with our commitment to boost social entrepreneurship in Africa as a means of accelerating the continent’s socio-economic development. This year, the Fellowship welcomed 21 African social entrepreneurs from eleven African countries. The Fellows were trained and equipped with the knowledge and skills they require to strengthen their business models and operate sustainable enterprises that help address both business and societal needs.
Chairman, Sahara Foundation Board of Trustees
Our Flagship CSR Initiatives
Sahara Foundation remains very much aligned with helping to attain the sustainable development goals. Leveraging our structure as a corporate foundation, we are committed to creating a sustainable and thriving environment for today and future generation in Africa.
Our Commitment to improving lives and building sustainable communities is unwavering
Sahara Foundation remains very much aligned with helping to attain the 17 sustainable development goals. Leveraging SDG 17 - Partnerships for the Goals, we are working with well-meaning organizations to achieve increased access to energy for all, create an enabling environment where lives and livelihoods thrive in a viable way, and preserve the environment for today and future generations.
Bridging the Gap Scholarship Programme
Over the last five years, Sahara Foundation in partnership with the Murtala Mohammed Foundation has been providing primary, secondary, and tertiary scholarships to internally displaced children in the Northeast of Nigeria.
The Bridging the Gap Scholarship programme aims to improve the quality and access to education of indigenes of the communities through provision for their education and social needs.
Improved Security through Clean Energy Revamp for Police Stations
This year, as part of the Foundation’s mandate to support improved security through clean energy across our host communities, we embarked on the renovation of several police stations including the installation of solar energy to enhance their operations and support effective community policing
The heart of a volunteer is not measured in size, but by the depth of the commitment to make a difference in the lives of others.
LETTER FROM OUR DIRECTOR
Bringing together a collective of diverse strengths, united in the commitment to improving the world we live in, is at the core of what we do and how we do things at Sahara Foundation. Sahara Foundation has a critical responsibility to unearth solutions that increases access to energy and create sustainable environments across our host communities. A responsibility we share with our stakeholders as we work together to deliver widespread impact.
With a clear focus on delivering on our responsibility, in 2022 we rolled out programs and activities aimed at achieving these goals.
Our Sahara STEAMers initiative, a STEAM afterschool program targeting secondary school students provided us with so many inspiring moments. One of my favorites was watching the students present their innovative solutions during the regional grand demo day competition. I got to witness firsthand, the growth in self-confidence and articulation from when we first met them. That in itself was all the validation that I needed to know that we were on the right path. Building confidence in the creative abilities of our adolescents in a drive to reposition them on the world stage, remains a key objective of the STEAMers initiative.
In 2022, through the Sahara Impact Fund Fellowship program, we continued to empower young African social innovators with business solutions that helps to improve access to energy and create sustainable environments.
This year’s Cohort, once again, showcased some of the enormous potential present on the continent. And our role is to continue to ensure that Africa’s innovation pipeline remains viable by identifying and empowering these changemakers and social innovators with the tools and resources they need, to succeed in inspiring a developed and sustainable Africa.
Our drive to inspire a movement of environmentally conscious people across our host communities continued throughout 2022. Through our Recycle Exchange Hub in Ijora, Lagos State, we continue to promote socio-economic and environmental sustainability by giving members of the community a chance to generate value from their waste, by exchanging recyclable materials for cash payouts and access to health insurance.
Come 2023, we are partnering with the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) and WeCyclers our implementing partner, to take the gospel of sustainable environment through recycling to 12 additional local governments in Lagos State. There we will be setting up recycle hubs and rewarding the much-needed positive social behavioral changes with monetary compensation/health insurance.
This year, we also set out to improve security across our host communities with the renovation of police stations and the installation of solar power to aid seamless security operations, thereby enhancing safety in the promotion of sustainable environments.
Our strength as a corporate Foundation is strongly tied to our volunteers and partners. I would like to thank everyone for playing a significant part in our efforts this year (internally and externally), to positively impact and transform lives and livelihoods.
And as we look forward to the new year, I trust we will continue to work together to achieve all our goals in bringing energy to life, responsibly.
Happy New Year!!
2022 at a Glance