“From Grievance to Reform”: NOBUL Africa Foundation Unveils i-ACT Project to Transform Youth Engagement in Benue
This post has already been read 2388 times!
A new era of youth-driven governance reform began on Monday in Makurdi as the NOBUL Africa Foundation, with support from the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF), launched the Institutional Accountability & Transparency (i-ACT) Project. The initiative, hailed as the first practice-focused civic leadership programme of its kind in Benue State, is designed to move young people “from learning, to institutional immersion, to policy innovation.”
Delivering her keynote at the launch, Soohemba Agatha Aker, Executive Director of NOBUL Africa Foundation, underscored the urgency of the project. “Benue has endured a traumatic period of attacks, displacement and humanitarian need that deeply affect young people and communities across the state,” she said. “Recent reporting documents waves of violence, mass displacement, and continuing security shocks that have disrupted livelihoods and civic life.”
She explained that the timing of the project was deliberate, noting that “the state government has signalled an agenda for digital inclusion and youth empowerment, making now a crucial moment to connect young citizens with real levers of governance.”
Aker posed the central question of the day: Why now? “Young people in Benue are living the consequences of gaps in governance: communities displaced by violence, stalled public services, and fragile systems where accountability is often weak. These are not abstract problems, they are the day-to-day realities of Benue’s youth. i-ACT is designed to bridge that gap by equipping young people to see how institutions work and to produce practical policy proposals that respond to the problems they witness. The project also aligns with current conversations on anti-corruption and public accountability.”
She went on to highlight what makes the programme unique. “Unlike short workshops that teach concepts, i-ACT combines three unique, interlinked components,” she explained. “This ‘learn→immerse→innovate’ model is intentionally practical: we are training youth not only to ask questions, but to stay in the room where decisions are made and propose workable solutions.”
According to Aker, the impact of the project will be transformative. “i-ACT will train cohorts of young people who can identify gaps in public service delivery, engage constructively with public servants and design policy recommendations based on experience. By attaching interns to public institutions, the programme improves youth understanding of institutional constraints while giving agencies fresh evidence and recommendations from a younger perspective.”
She also announced the official call for applications. “The i-ACT call for applications opens on 23 September 2025 and closes on 14 October 2025. Eligible applicants are Benue residents aged 18–35. NOBUL particularly encourages applications from women, persons with disabilities, youth from low-income and conflict-affected communities, and under-represented local government areas.”
Her message to young people was clear and emphatic: “Sitting at the edge of governance is no longer an option for Benue youth. i-ACT gives young people the requisite knowledge to interrogate systems, the access to live those systems, and the platform to advocate for policy change. That is how we move from grievance to the reform we all desire.” 
The NOBUL Africa Foundation, a youth-led nonprofit, has consistently championed youth inclusion in leadership. “We design programmes that combine skills training with practical engagements so that young leaders can have the platform and opportunity to influence systems,” Aker reminded the audience.
She also acknowledged the critical role of the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund in making the project possible. “The Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF) supports youth-focused innovation and leadership across Nigeria. NYFF’s partnership with NOBUL enables this new model of practical youth engagement in Benue.”
With the launch of i-ACT, Benue’s young people now have a pathway to move beyond grievance and into the heart of governance, armed with the skills, access, and platforms to drive accountability and reform.
