The First Lady, Mrs Oluremi Tinubu, in Abuja, on Tuesday, urged girls and young women nationwide to never stop dreaming, saying the absence of personal vision was one of the greatest obstacles to human achievement.
This is as at least 27,345 residents of the Federal Capital Territory benefited from her Renewed Hope Initiative, as the pet project marked three years of operations in the FCT.
Tuesday’s gathering, tagged ‘Our Stories, Her Impact,’ was convened by the office of the First Lady in conjunction with the Federal Capital Territory Administration and the Abuja Initiative 2027.
Delivering the keynote at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja, Mrs Tinubu said the discipline of holding and pursuing a vision was not a luxury but a survival tool for the modern woman.
“Dreaming is what keeps any human being going. If you sit and don’t have a dream, a vision of what you want to become, it becomes very tough for you,” she said.
She added that the Dream Girls initiative, introduced under the FCT structure of RHI, reflected her personal conviction about helping girls build confidence, ambition and character from an early age, and urged them to also invest in soft skills that often prove decisive in public and professional life.
She noted, “You have to learn a lot of things about etiquette and protocol because you don’t know when you will be called upon to do something.”
Tracing the initiative’s journey, the First Lady said the RHI held its inaugural meeting at the State House on July 7, 2023, and conducted its first field intervention barely a week later, mobilising support for victims of the Trademoore Estate flood disaster in Lugbe, Abuja, on July 13, 2023.
It was formally registered on August 9, 2023, and was established as a complementary vehicle for President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, channelling people-centred interventions to communities that had not been fully captured by formal government programmes.
“The theme of this event, ‘Our Stories, Her Impact,’ aptly captures the significance of today’s programme.
“At the heart of every intervention, every programme, and every outreach, is a person whose life has been touched, a family that has found succour and support, or a community that has been empowered,” the First Lady remarked.
According to her, the initiative had, over the past three years, extended support to women, youth, children, veterans, senior citizens, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups, including through farmers’ grants, skills acquisition, scholarships, educational materials, health interventions and emergency assistance to conflict and disaster-affected communities.
She noted, “The testimonies from the Federal Capital Territory represent a fraction of the work we have done across the nation.”
Mrs Tinubu thanked state first ladies, RHI coordinators across the 36 states and the FCT, donors, partners and community leaders for sustaining the initiative, and singled out the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, for backing its programmes.
She also commended the immediate past FCT RHI Coordinator, Dr Adedayo Benjamins-Laniyi, as she transitioned to a new responsibility.
To the beneficiaries of the initiative, she stated, “To all the beneficiaries that RHI has impacted, I celebrate you. Your courage, determination, and success stories are inspiring and encouraging.
“As you have been helped and assisted in one form or another, do the same for a neighbour that we cannot see, no matter how small.
“As we look ahead, let us continue to show compassion, extend a helping hand to those in need, and create opportunities that promote peace, progress, and prosperity for our nation.”
Presenting the FCT impact report, Mandate Secretary, FCTA Women Affairs Secretariat, Mrs Benjamins-Laniyi, said the 27,345 beneficiaries were reached through five strategic pillars and more than 15 major interventions over three years, each pillar targeting a distinct category of vulnerability.
She said 3,307 children benefited from the programme; 4,427 persons were reached under economic empowerment; 4,866 beneficiaries were supported in food security and agriculture; 970 persons with disabilities were assisted; 4,423 beneficiaries came under protection and systems strengthening; and 550 elderly persons also benefited.
She explained that the economic empowerment pillar was designed to support self-reliance, while the food security and agriculture arm was intended to improve household productivity and resilience at the community level.
“The RHI remains committed to expanding its reach and deepening its interventions in the FCT through continued collaboration with relevant stakeholders,” she said.
The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imaan Suleiman-Ibrahim, said the initiative had succeeded in placing traditional institutions at the centre of delivery rather than leaving them as observers.
“Traditional rulers and their wives are no longer spectators. We are now implementors.
“Our policies are now recognised as delivery points for health, education and economic programmes,” she said.
She cited measurable child protection gains in FCT communities linked to the initiative’s advocacy work.
“In FCT communities, we are seeing fewer cases of child marriage and more girls completing secondary school.
“This is prevention in action. The beauty of RHI is that it respects culture while advancing progress.
“The Renewed Hope is not a slogan. In the FCT, it is a woman’s face, a girl’s school uniform, and a mother’s dignity,” she stated.
The Minister of State for the FCT, Mariya Mahmud, described the First Lady as a leader who had moved beyond directing to demonstrating.
“You didn’t just direct it. You showed us how to do it, Your Excellency,” she said.
The minister noted that placing money in women’s hands was generating economic multiplier effects beyond the immediate grant.
“We’re not just giving women grants to go and farm. We’re giving them the opportunity and what people call agro-value chains, so that they can also become agro-entrepreneurs.
“Your Excellency will continue to put money in women’s hands, and women will continue to write their success stories,” Mahmud said.
The President of the Defence and Police Officers’ Wives Association, Mrs Mernan Oluyede, argued that the true measure of the initiative’s impact lay not in its statistics but in the individual stories behind them, such as widows rebuilding their lives, a student completing a degree or a veteran finding renewed purpose.
“Behind every empowerment programme, educational support initiative, healthcare intervention, and welfare package is a story of renewed dignity, restored confidence, and strengthened hope,” she stated.