"Impossible is Nothing, at best just a Mirage"- Emmanuel Agunze, Founder of the Makoko Dream

In an interview with Attain, Emmanuel Agunze, Founder of the Makoko Dream shared his passion to see kids in rural communities get quality education and empowerment which will therefore positively impact and transform their lives, families and communities for the better.

Tell us about yourself

My name is Emmanuel Agunze, I am an educator and Urban Slum developer. I run the Makoko Dream, a non profit basically set out to give dignity to slum dwellers in Nigeria and Africa via emphasis on Children Education, Youth Development and Skill Acquisition , Girl empowerment, Tourism opportunities and General Health & Well being. I am a 2017 Nelson Mandela Innovation Awards Youth Activist Finalist and 2018 Mandela Washington Fellow under the auspices of the Young African Leaders Initiative YALI as run by the State Department of the United States. I am an Alumni of Indiana University, Indianapolis and Bloomington, Indiana State, United States of America. Here I studied Civic Leadership and Fund Raising

In my first degree, I studied Architecture at Covenant University, Ota, Nigeria. Personally, I am passionate about Fashion and run a clothine line, Rextmarvels. I am a patriotic Nigerian.

Tell us about your Non Profit

Every child is a blessing from God and as such should be giving the basic things to thrive with. Since a child does not choose his/her parents, he/she should not be made responsible for the decisions of the parents as regards their education, spirituality, welfare and Well being.

This is usually not the case, especially in Slum communities in Nigeria and Africa. More rapidly in Nigeria is a rise in Urban-Slum communities, caused mainly because of Rural-Urban Migration that occurs and will keep occurring as people seek for greener pastures. This and many more made me to start the Makoko Dream. Makoko being a major slum in Africa and sarcastically called the Venice of Africa, is a pilot project to test the viability of what we do

The Makoko Dream started in March 1st 2016, but projects kickstarted on January 1st 2017. So far, we have reached out to more than 5000 people and have been responsible for advocating for more than 100 children in primary school. We are known for the creation and design of the First School Bus on Water in Nigeria and Africa. That is a customised canoe for taking the Makoko Dream school children to and from school Free of charge. More things about this can be found on bit.do/agunze1

When did Makoko Dream start?

March 1st 2016 and projects started January 1st 2017

What were the main challenges you faced early on and how did you overcome them?

Trust and Finance
However, till date we don't have a sponsor. We leverage on our funds and the network of friends and family to generate funds.

What was the Greatest challenge you faced in pursuit of this Vision?

Language barrier has been our greatest challenge. And therefore more work was done on getting volunteers who could translate

What do you consider success in your Project?

Every day is a success story. Just knowing that a child's life is being transformed is the greatest success

At what point did you begin to achieve success in pursuit of your Vision and how did it happen?

That would be after creating the First school bus on water in Africa. It opened a lot of doors. That was in January 31st and February 1st 2017

What would you consider your greatest achievement ever since you started ?

Every day was an achievement to me. If I am to pin point one, it will be when I was nominated for an Award, in October 2017 The Nelson Mandela Innovation Awards as a Youth Activist

If you could go back in time, what are the changes you would have made for Makoko ?

Probably be more courageous and daring

What else should we see you doing in the Future?

In future, I want to build the first block wall school and vocation for the Makoko Dream.

Aside your Non-Profit, what are your other interests?

My other interests are Fashion and Catering.

What's the most important lesson you have learnt since you started your Non-profit project?

Impossible is nothing, at best just a mirage, identified and demystified by Hard work and dedication.

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