Dear Friends,
This past year was incredibly challenging and rewarding here at The Spring Development Initiative (TSDI). When we drafted our plans to upskill and reskill community builders, we had no idea how much response and engagement we would get but having seen what has happened since we started, we are glad to say that this first year of our journey to empower community builders has ultimately been highly impactful.
Working with our first affiliate, Strategy and Innovation for Development (SI4DEV) in Nigeria, we were able help to train hundreds in leadership, planning and communication skills this year. We did not only provide training materials, we also worked to connect these community builders with mentors who would further guide them in developing plans to change their communities in a sustainable and trackable way.
You will read some of their stories in our 2018 annual report, and get a glimpse of some of the fully- or partly funded causes and projects they are working on. Please read or download the full report at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_OG-_FtLt2-fYSMq80kD8OPY1okdNYil/view.
Moving forward we would like to expand our connections with the SI4DEV organization and seek out new opportunities with more non-for-profit companies in US, Nigeria and other developing countries to expand our work. At TSDI we strongly believe in the power of collaboration and partnership towards the sustainable development goals. We would love to share resources and experiences with anyone passionate about grassroots leadership development and sustainable economic growth.
We cannot finish this address without acknowledging the efforts of the board members, without whom a lot of this would not have been accomplished. We also want to acknowledge the many volunteers and donors who have taken a leap of faith and supported our non-profit financially or otherwise in 2018.
Our achievements this first year give us the confidence that in the coming years, we can continue to build up leaders who seek to make a positive difference where they live. We are therefore excited to look into the future and plan another year of training and mentor programs, new partnerships and exciting community projects.
We are so grateful for your friendship.
Let's do more this year!
Nkem, Akin and the Team