US-based NGO Lists Ways to Economic Stability Through Strategic Investments in Youth, Helping the Poor

By Olusegun Samuel

Born to a Peasant family in the South South deprived community of Akwa Ibom State, Victor Mbaba, a United States based Philanthropist and founder of the a thriving Non Government Organization (NGO) ACF Metro Atlanta, has always believed in giving till it hurts the giver.

With an unwavering commitment to children of African descent, Mbaba dedication to helping others is deeply rooted in his personal journey of resilience and hope.

Born in Nigeria during a time of civil unrest, Victor’s life was forever altered by the Biafran War. In 1967, his village was bombed, leaving him orphaned, homeless, and without access to education for three years. The hardships he faced as a child fueled a lifelong passion for creating a brighter future for children in Africa and beyond.

Despite the devastation of his early years, Mbaba has become a beacon of hope for vulnerable children and families. His deep understanding of the struggles facing African communities, both domestically and internationally, combined with his compassionate approach to problem-solving have guided ACF’s work in providing essential support for food, housing, and education.

In an online interview with our correspondent, Mbaba, who has been shipping books to the less privileged in Nigeria and Africa, called on Government at all levels to invest in the people, especially the children and youths through education in the country, adding that is the best way to alleviate the recent economic woes in Nigeria and Africa.

He also called on Nigerian elite, corporate organisations and rich individuals to organise and help families in Nigeria and across Africa to alleviate their sufferings through sponsorship of programmes and donations to trusted NGOs to help poverty elevation .

The Founder and CEO of the Metro Atlanta based NGO in an online chat with our correspondent, 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.

Books recently shipped to Nigeria by ACF of Metro Atlanta for donation to schools

The US-based entrepreneur and philanthropist equally called on Nigerian businesses, churches, foundations, and everyday people not to turn away as many are living in difficult times.

Saying that most Nigerian elites, including politicians are playing games with the lives 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. Invest in our people in genuine ways 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 own 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.

He said, “Well the strategy in everything that we do , Nigeria is a country where we are suspicious of one another until we get to know one another more, so my strategy is getting to work with people that we know first and that is the principle of education, starting from the known to the unknown.

“So we come in and few of my friends and say “Hey Augustine look at this idea ,I just helped one family with five hundred thousand naira (500,000)and the woman is trading, we encourage you to do the same.”

“I can do that in honor of my birthday, I can do it in memory of someone, so I’m not coming to say Nigerians should be for Nigerians, I’m trying to grow a very small movement base on proven 22 years of track record of doing something for others

“African children need help, in fact if you put it in a book you are actually hiding it away from people, so we come and organize small group and they participate then you send the newspaper out , newspaper will publish, radio will broadcast, it will be on CNN Africa and it will begin to cultivate the minds of people to give and help others.

“Even when Government is working fine as it should be, we should be the biggest part of the government, non profitable organisatin is the technically and an unofficial arm of the government. Even when the government do very well there’s still room for non profitable organizations to play a developmental role, it is the same here in the US, in Canada, in the UK. It could be the same in Nigeria, So it could be the effort of how we use the media to showcase our work then we re-cultivate the minds of our people to do more of giving to support in development not just to share bag of rice.”

On his advice to government to alleviate poverty, Mbaba urged government to look at the importance of investment in people because that is the best investment you can ever make – to make a good , intentional and selfless investment in our people, especially the children

“It is an effort to help all of ourselves, including those who may be politicians in this current time, including those who would be the CEOs of companies in this current time, including the mothers ,the father’s and the children themselves. So invest in our children and don’t play games with it, to be truthful and sincere in our investment.”