Life Helpers Initiative [LHI] has come a long way since its inception in 2004. From just having a passion to do something about an identified need in society, to becoming a structured, transformative and leading non-governmental and not-for-profit organization in Nigeria.
When it started out in 2004, it was a strong desire to support orphans and vulnerable children predominantly at the Sokoto State Orphanage and Shelter Home. As then, it was also noticed that during national and religious festivals such children and even many other children feel completely left out, rejected, and abandoned in the community. Thus Beulah Projects, as it was known then, was established to support such children and they were hosted to funfair and parties during all national holidays and religious festivals irrespective of religious, cultural, ethnic, or other considerations; the binding force here is their disadvantaged and exclusive social status.
By 2006, more opportunities to provide timely and needed support were seen and explored, which invariably expanded the scope of the work and required some legal framework and a need to restructure. This led to the changing of the name from Beulah Projects to Life Helpers Initiative (LHI) and it became registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission by September 2007, subsequently with other relevant government-based agencies at the federal and state levels such Ministry of Budget & Economic Planning, State Emergency Management Agency, Ministry of Women and Children Affairs among others. LHI also became members of a few networks and associations both at the national level as well as in the different state such as Civil Society working on HIV/AIDS in Nigeria [CISHAN], Coalition of NGOs in Sokoto [CONSS], Association of Civil Society working on Malaria, Immunization & Nutrition [ACOMIN], Child Protection Network [CPN], and developed a strong working relationships with key government agencies like Sokoto State Sport Council, National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking In Persons and child related Offences [NAPTIP]. LHI also work closely with Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Civil Defense and Security Corps, in order to further strengthen her service delivery.
In the last 10 years, we have expanded to several other locations which are Kebbi (2013), Zamfara (2015), Borno, Yobe and Adamawa (2017), Bauchi (2020), Ebonyi (2021), Plateau (2022), Katsina (2023) and Abuja (2021) which serves as an implementation and liaison office. We have successfully partnered with national and international non-government and other government agencies in carrying out various interventions in our thematic focuses of health, education, livelihood/socioeconomic developments, Gender/Social Inclusion and Agriculture/Climate adaptation.
