Toyin Saraki - Unlikely Activist

Toyin Saraki at the UN Every Woman Every Child dinner on September 25, 2012 in New York, USA.

Toyin Saraki is the former  First Lady of Kwara state, Nigeria. Her Husband Dr Bukola Saraki was the Governor of Kwara state from 2003-2011.

She is the founder of The Wellbeing Foundation, lawyer and International Campaigner for Maternal Newborn and Child Health, Rights and Empowerment.
Continue to read more and also see a video of Toyin Saraki speaking to CNN...

Arriving Kwara State as First Lady in 2003, Mrs. Saraki immediately embarked on an 'Assessing the Needs' tour of the state, an extensive consultative experience that gave birth to the Kwara Wellbeing Trust, KWT, Alaafia Kwara, (as it is fondly called) catering to the specific needs of the good people of Kwara state; providing a wide-range support and opportunities to all, and complementing the duties of the Office of the wife of the Governor, Kwara State.

With ongoing community interaction in Kwara State, it became clear that a coherent non governmental strategy was needed for Nigeria not only to provide necessary impetus to the efforts of individual to generate thier own prosperity, but also to provide a framework for collaborative efforts between NGO's, hence, the emergence of The Wellbeing Foundation.
The Foundation is encouraged by the philosophy of the great writer, Elie Wiesel that “If someone suffers and keeps silent, it can be a good silence. If someone suffers and I keep silent, then it is destructive silence. We are responsible for one another. I am responsible for his or her suffering, for his or her destiny”.
The Wellbeing Foundation’s most notable achievement is the development and implementation of the Integrated Maternal Newborn and Child Health Personal Health Record, which has already saved thousands of lives by ensuring that mothers receive a full continuum of care from pregnancy until the child is 5 years old. The Personal Health Record (PHR©) has been adopted by the Federal Government of Nigeria and has been deployed under the platform of the Midwives Service Scheme.

"Today 1500 women died in child birth, I myself lost a child and nearly died in childbirth, and I’ve committed to spending the last 19 years of my life, the age of my surviving child, to find a solution to halt these needless deaths" , she said at a UN event held recently.

 In 1994, Toyin started the Lifestream Charity to sponsor corrective surgeries for children with heart deformities and has since immersed in humanitarian and development work.

A global advocate of the UN's Every Woman Every Child effort, Toyin acts as Board Chair of the White Ribbon Alliance Nigeria, Chair of the FIDA International Committee on Law Protecting the Rights of Children, Goodwill Ambassador of the Olave Baden- Powell Society (OB-PS) which supports the efforts of the World Association of Girls Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS), and sits on the boards of the Global Foundation for the Elimination of Domestic Violence and The Africa Justice Foundation.

We need more people like her in Nigeria. Those in authority should take a cue from her.