FG Hails Unparalleled Achievements Of Actionaid Nigeria At 25
After 25 years of shaping lives across Nigeria, one question echoed through the hall in Abuja on Thursday: What does true impact look like?
At the 25th anniversary celebration of ActionAid Nigeria, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, offered an answer, not in abstract terms, but in the real stories and struggles of communities the organisation has touched.
For a quarter of a century, ActionAid has stood where challenges meet courage, from classrooms in remote villages to emergency shelters in times of crisis.
Idris captured this vividly when he said the organisation had “taken development to the frontlines”, empowering women and girls, strengthening education, improving healthcare, and amplifying the voices of Nigeria’s most vulnerable.
The celebration was not just backward-looking as two powerful symbols of ActionAid’s future, its AAN@25 Legacy Book and the prototype of its new headquarters building, were unveiled, marking an era of deeper presence and greater ambition.
The Minister described the unveiling as a “strong signal of organisational growth and long-term presence in Nigeria”.
Yet, there was tension in the air, not from the event itself but from what the Minister called the mischaracterisation of Nigeria, particularly abroad.
Idris challenged civil society groups to help correct false global narratives, insisting that Nigeria “is not a violator of religious freedom” and that the constitution clearly protects such liberties.
He acknowledged the nation’s security challenges, the fear in communities, the anxiety of parents, the tragic stories that too often hit the headlines.
He assured that the Federal Government, is responding decisively. With President Tinubu’s declaration of a national emergency on security, new recruitment drives, support for state security outfits, and renewed advocacy for state police are already underway.
“Our children must be safe in their schools, safe in their communities, and safe in their homes,” he stressed.
ActionAid’s story, built in villages, communities, and crisis centres, mirrors Nigeria’s wider journey.
And with government pledging stronger collaboration, the next 25 years may well write an even more compelling chapter.
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