As the focal agency for access to qualitative healthcare, education and economic strengthening opportunities for all Nigerians. The Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme (ECEWS) is a leading and reputable indigenous not-for-profit organisation. ECEWS seeks to create equitable opportunities for persons with disabilities. The CEO Andy Eyo shares how he is doing his part to build a more inclusive Nigeria. by Nsikak Akpan.
Dr Andy Eyo from Abak in Akwa Ibom , a small village on the map, was inspired through various mentorship programs. Leading him to say
“Mentorship is big and that is what we want to do, mentor more young people, if only our motive is right. We never came here seeking for our benefit, we are interested in service, and that’s what also inspires public service”.
The 22-year-old brand which started in 2001, grew to become the lead donor recipient of the U.S.A Department of State, and also one of the largest funded indigenous partners by the U.S.A in Nigeria, the CEO added by saying.
“This is because of our credibility that over the years, we have worked with them, and also a key partner to the U.S.A Centre for Disease and Control Preventions (CDC), as well as to the global funds for the fight against tuberculosis and malaria, so these are areas we partner with the world bank and the Federal Government, basically our work in the foundation is multi farsighted”.
“The Three major areas we focus on are health, education and economic strength. And our mantra is basically our mandate. Which is taken from Isaiah 61 v 4 “And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations”.
which is to restore old waste, so we go where people don’t go, we go the hard way finding tuberculosis cases and right now in Akwa Ibom, we are also working with a repeller to ensure that people with different neglected tropical diseases like elephantiasis and glaucoma are all getting medical service because these are the real poor people. For us, it is all about giving back, and we are reaching out to millions every year”.
The ECEWS program in the educational sector is presently supporting several states which are Benue, Enugu, and Ebonyi states. Currently, it is a community learning hub, strengthening back-to-school and out-of-school kids, then boys’ education issues, having a large office here in uyo, which is her international headquarters, and other cooperate offices in Abuja, Cross River, Ebonyi States, Osun states, Ekiti state and Delta state.
Speaking further the CEO said “We also have a registered charity organisation in the U.S, so we have been registered in the state of Texas since 2011, and doing some small work there but particularly it is giving back to the American people the investment they made in our county because the United States of America has invested over half a billion dollar in Nigeria yearly. The HIV Aids program is pulling about 1.9 million people who are on drugs, and is keeping them alive trying to make sure they don’t transmit the virus”.
“So, talking about our work, we have put smiles on the faces of small market women, over 100 market women here in Akwa Ibom in the past three years, with small grants that have been uplifted. We still go back to check on them and their business. So those are the kind of smaller projects we do which in turn touches our heart. Still, a large majority of the work we do, providing medication, making sure we reach out to key populations, people living with disability, female sex workers, and people who inject drugs. Nobody has reached out to them ensuring that all of this neglected population have access to quality public health”.
The CEO continued to share his organisation’s passion for meeting its core values. “Though we don’t support prostitution neither do we support homosexuality but we support access for the population to life-saving drugs. When they are found HIV positive protects the generality of everyone, because once we can find them and put them on medication, they can’t transmit the virus to other people and we are almost approaching total control in our state, over the years it has been a very impressive targeting campaign in those sixteen years of funding from the US Government and the global family since 2007 and that’s rare. In our sector, we have been very un-Nigeria putting the money where it ought to go and having a clean financial audit”.
“Our major staff travel across the world to do work presentations and conferences showcasing our best practice which is our capital. So, the quality we are trying to present is such that if you want a good program, you want a good solution, we want to present ourselves as the best entity in any donor agency that anybody can count on”.
“So, we also are very meticulous with our staffing and we higher the best quality because we are trying to be the best, our staff enjoy international health insurance and pension. They all get the best quality of life packages, we just have to give them a 35% adjustment in response to the economy, because we are trying to keep the best available talent”.
How do you spend your holiday?
Yes, basically we work most of the time, but we have to fund and work hard so you can play hard, basically for me I have a great family; my wife Victoria, four kids, Clay, Daniel, David and Audian, They family is big now. The last Christmas we were in Nairobi visiting a few nice places, like the big five, in holiday you need to catch up with it, and this year we thinking to Disney, (Innovation actually comes from degree of comfort) if you are two neck deep without taking holiday, I can assure you innovative edge will go down, so I spent time going out with kids, family, family time is a big holiday time.