grantees » Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu

Nnaemeka is young Nigerian activist who has been making a name for himself far beyond the borders of his region and even nation. As a ceaseless advocate for smallholder agriculture, he is adamant that it is the only option for spurring growth, overcoming poverty, and enhancing food security. He firmly believes that “simply put, to reduce poverty access to information must be liberated and the quality of information must be improved”. The Smallholders Foundation, which he established at only 21 years of age, delivers reliable, relevant, and well adapted information on agriculture and the environment that benefits small holder farmers in innovative ways whilst pursuing the two goals of sustainable development and environmental conservation.

With the support of the JWH initiative Nnaemeka undertook a practical non-profit management and leadership development course with LEAD Anglophone West Africa based in Lagos, Nigeria to improve his skills in leading a sustainable development CSO. The training combined knowledge of the most current environment and development issues with skills including leadership, team building, conflict management and negotiation, system thinking, cross cultural communication, and public presentation – all in a multicultural learning context.

Nnaemeka successfully completed the course and has since then been recognised for his work with numerous awards, including the Future Award Young Person of the Year.