Extended Hands Foundation, Ford Foundation to Tackle Gender-based Violence in Inter-school Debate Competition

Mary Nnah

The Extended Hands Foundation, a charity organisation founded by actress and producer Stephanie Linus is creatively engaging the younger generation in vital conversations about gender-based violence.

With support from Ford Foundation, the organisation hosted students of six secondary schools across Lagos state to an inter-school debate competition with the theme:  “A world without Gender-Based Violence.”

This platform provided an opportunity for the students to raise awareness, ignite discussions, and explore innovative solutions to create a world where everyone can live free from violence and discrimination. 

“This Inter-school debate competition is a response to the impressive work of change agents across secondary schools in Nigeria, especially secondary schools that are our project partners,” said Stephanie Linus, founder of Extended Hands Foundation.

“We aim to convey, unite, and guide Nigerian students on the path to being agents of transformation through the power of knowledge sharing.”

A panel of distinguished social entrepreneurs and subject-matter experts selected the winners of the debate competition after reviewing all the presentations. Some representatives of the participating schools also volunteered as ambassadors to continue championing the cause in their respective schools and communities. 

The Extended Hands Foundation is committed to investing in the development of Nigerian society by equipping youths with the right capacities and proffering solutions to sustainable development goals.

Representatives of six schools: Molan High School, New Edition School, Great Lilly College, Ireti Senior Grammar School, Victoria Island Senior Secondary School, and Gbara Community Senior Secondary School participated in this highly competitive debate, with Molan High School, Ikotun, Lagos emerging as the winner.