By Joy Onu
The Still Waters Foundation says it will provide sanitary pads to 2,000 girls in rural communities from February 2027 as part of efforts to promote menstrual hygiene and keep girls in school.
The foundation’s Executive Director, Dr Femi Lanre-Oke, announced the plan on Wednesday during a courtesy visit by the executive members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Correspondents’ Chapel, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), to his office at Jesus Praise Evangelical Ministry, Airport Road, Abuja.
Lanre-Oke said women and girls remained a priority in the foundation’s humanitarian interventions because of their vulnerability to poverty, gender discrimination and limited access to education and economic opportunities.
“The girl child and women are among the most vulnerable in our society. Even in this day and age, some people still believe that girls do not need to go to school,” he said.
He explained that the foundation supports girls through scholarships at primary, secondary and tertiary levels, while also providing vocational training and business assistance to help women achieve financial independence.
Under its skills-acquisition initiatives, the foundation trained about 200 women in a rural community to produce perfumes, insecticides and groundnuts. The beneficiaries also received materials to enable them to establish small businesses.
Lanre-Oke said another programme organised in June reached about 100 women, who received food items, including rice and beans, alongside other forms of assistance.
He estimated that nearly 400 women benefited from the foundation’s various empowerment programmes in 2026.
Beyond individual support, he said the foundation undertakes at least one community development project annually, depending on identified needs. Such interventions include water supply, school construction and the installation of solar-powered lighting.
According to him, the foundation is considering building a school in a community without one and plans to explore a partnership with the Federal Ministry of Education to facilitate the project.
Lanre-Oke, a leadership development expert and pastor, also spoke about a proposed initiative to provide accommodation, food and rehabilitation for people living on the streets for one year.
He said the programme had been suspended temporarily while the foundation consulted on the legal implications, welfare obligations and professional support needed to ensure the beneficiaries’ safe reintegration into society.
On reaching women in remote communities, he explained that female members of the foundation’s team were sometimes assigned to engage beneficiaries who might be uncomfortable discussing personal experiences with others.
The approach, he said, allowed the team to build trust with the women before determining the support they required.
Earlier, the NUJ Correspondents’ Chapel Chairman, Comrade Felix Ojo, said the delegation visited to congratulate Lanre-Oke on the successful 10th anniversary of Jesus Praise Evangelical Ministry and acknowledge his contributions to humanitarian services, community development and the welfare of disadvantaged Nigerians.
Ojo highlighted the media’s role in strengthening democracy, amplifying public concerns and holding institutions accountable. He also stressed the need to improve journalists’ welfare.
During the interaction, members of the delegation urged the foundation to strengthen its documentation and monitoring systems to track beneficiaries and assess the long-term impact of its programmes.
The visit also provided an opportunity for discussions on possible collaboration between the foundation and the NUJ Correspondents’ Chapel.
