The Mayor of the London Borough of Southwark, Mr. Michael Situ will be hosting captains of industries, delegates and friends of a Nigerian and UK charity organisation, IA-Foundation, at the Southwark Civic townhall, London Bridge, overlooking the River Thames by 6 pm, on the second of February 2024.

The Founder and CEO of IA-Foundation, Mrs. Ibironke Adeagbo, announced during an interactive session with one of the reporters at the News Agency of Nigeria. According to Mrs Ibironke, the purpose of the event is to showcase the works, impacts and key findings of the Foundation and to attract the attention of the Nigerian diaspora community and international communities towards building shared visions and mobilising resources to combat the menace of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

The event, which will be attended by members of the UK parliament, UK councillors, politicians, philanthropists, delegates from corporate organisations, captains of industries, education practitioners, and friends and supporters of IA-Foundation in the United Kingdom, is part of the Foundation’s advocacy strategy to ensure the international community plays an instrumental role in the development of a solid and functional educational system in Nigeria.

In the words of the immediate past Commissioner of Education in Lagos State, Mrs Folashade Adefisayo, ‘IA-Foundation has continued to be the trailblazer in Nigeria’s education terrain’, and the Foundation has not relented in its efforts to ensure no child is left on the streets of Nigeria without a formal or informal education. Recently, IA-Foundation hosted a first-of-its-kind Out-of-School Children Summit in Lagos themed Street-to-School: A Panacea to a Menace where strategic, impact-driven and solution-oriented solutions were outlined to the menace of over 20.2 million out-of-school children in the country.  The summit attracted prominent individuals and stakeholders such as Human Rights Activist Femi Falana; National Chess Champion and Founder of Chess in Slums Africa, government representatives, researchers, and corporate entities, amongst others.

Recently, in recognition of the amazing work of the organisation, the Foundation was honoured as the Most Innovative and Resourceful Charity Organization at the 7^th edition of the Prestige Excellence and Award Lecture 2023. The award is in recognition of the innovative solutions and pragmatic contributions of the Foundation towards the advancement of the United Nations SDG 4.  In her award speech, Mrs. Ibironke whom Timbiri Kieni Princess represented, noted that “the reward for hard work is more hard work” and reiterated the Foundation’s commitment to ensuring more children have access to quality and affordable education.

Furthermore, the work of the Foundation has continued to attract the attention of the Nigerian diaspora community. In a new post shared today, 14^th November 2023, the Founder and CEO of IA-Foundation, Mrs Ibironke Adeagbo was identified as one of the top 100 Outstanding Nigerians in the Diaspora.  In a statement signed by the Co-editors, Dr. Badewa Adejugba-Williams  and Kammonke Aba, the list serves as a veritable reference guide to the Nigerian diaspora skills database that relevant institutions could use. Furthermore, it is in recognition of the diaspora community members who are complimenting the efforts of the government through contributions to the development of Nigeria through their competencies, expertise and experiences.