Yuletide: Foundation Fêtes over 150 PWDs in Abuja

A non-governmental organisation, Hadiza Aliyu Foundation (HAF), has distributed food items to more than 150 persons living with disabilities in Abuja as part of its Christmas outreach.

The exercise, held at the Karmajiji disabilities colony, was aimed at easing hardship and bringing relief to vulnerable members of the community during the festive season.

Founder of the foundation, Hadiza Aliyu Muhammed, said the initiative was driven by a commitment to support persons with disabilities and put smiles on their faces.

“We are here to support the Karmajiji community and share joy with them as Christmas approaches. This is our own way of giving back to society,” she said.

Aliyu said the foundation initially planned to reach 100 beneficiaries but later expanded the exercise to about 150 persons. “We decided to extend the support to about 150 people as part of our little effort to uplift and empower persons with disabilities, who are among the most vulnerable in society,” she said.

Each beneficiary received 5kg of rice, groundnut oil and spaghetti to help reduce the burden of feeding their families during the festive period. “The idea is to ease the struggle of putting food on the table for them, especially at this time of the year,” Aliyu said.

She recalled that during an earlier visit to the community, residents raised concerns about sexual abuse, particularly involving children.

“One of the most disturbing issues raised was sexual abuse of children. As a follow-up, we organised a sexuality education session for primary school pupils to sensitise them on the dangers and how to protect themselves,” she said.

Aliyu said the foundation also provided financial support to over 150 persons, adding that the intervention was funded from her personal resources.

“I have not received support from anywhere yet. This is purely my personal effort to be a voice for the voiceless,” she said.

She expressed hope that the foundation would partner with donors and development organisations to scale up its activities, while also calling on the government to strengthen laws protecting persons with disabilities and children.

“They have skills and business ideas, but funding is their major challenge. With proper support, many of them can become self-reliant,” she added.

Acting director of social welfare at the Social Development Secretariat, Gloria Onwuka, said the centre falls under the supervision of the Secretariat and welcomed the partnership with the foundation.

“We have been supporting the people here, and we appreciate this collaboration with the Hadiza Aliyu Foundation,” she said.

She assured that the Secretariat would continue to work with the foundation and link it with relevant partners to support vulnerable communities across the Federal Capital Territory.

Speaking on behalf of the community, Mohammed Suleiman Katsina thanked the foundation for the gesture and appealed to the federal government to improve living conditions in the settlement.