Leadership Development Reaches Over 9,000 Students Through Community-Based Initiative

By Ugo Aliogo

Educational institutions across Nigeria are increasingly recognising the value of leadership development programmes that extend beyond traditional classroom instruction, creating opportunities for young people to engage with civic responsibility and social participation in practical ways.

Princess-Anne Emeka-Obiajunwa, a leadership expert and founder of the Birthplace Empowerment Foundation, has coordinated a community-based leadership initiative that reached 9,758 students across 77 secondary schools in seven states between 2022 and 2024. The programme, supported by 16 trained leaders, addressed leadership, responsibility, and social participation within both school and community settings.

The initiative was delivered through sustained engagement within secondary schools, positioning leadership as a practice shaped through participation and responsibility rather than formal position or title. By working directly within educational environments, the programme created accessible entry points for students to engage with leadership in contexts familiar to them.
The Birthplace Empowerment Foundation served as the platform coordinating this multi-layered approach to leadership development. Its infrastructure supported engagement across schools, communities, and public forums, enabling continuity of delivery across participating locations.

Scale and accessibility were central features of the approach. By training 16 leaders to support delivery across 77 schools, the initiative extended capacity beyond direct facilitation while embedding leadership development within local contexts. These trained leaders supported ongoing engagement within schools and communities.

For participating students, the programme provided structured opportunities to reflect on their role within school and community life. Engagement focused on agency, participation, and responsibility, encouraging students to consider how individual action contributes to collective outcomes within their environments.

Emeka-Obiajunwa’s leadership activity during this period took place alongside postgraduate study in Management at Nottingham Trent University in the United Kingdom. While undertaking formal academic training, she continued applied leadership work within community and educational settings. In 2024, leadership conferences convened by Princess-Anne Emeka-Obiajunwa were held in Tanzania and the United Kingdom, extending leadership dialogue beyond national boundaries. The conferences brought together young people and leaders from different educational, social, and cultural contexts to engage with leadership challenges and responsibilities within their communities and institutions.

As schools and community organisations continue to explore approaches to preparing young people for civic participation, initiatives delivered through the Birthplace Empowerment Foundation demonstrate how leadership development can be embedded within educational settings through sustained engagement and trained local facilitators.