• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
AFRIPOL

AFRIPOL

en English
ar Arabiczh-CN Chinese (Simplified)nl Dutchen Englishfr Frenchde Germanit Italianpt Portugueseru Russianes Spanish
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Mission Statement
  • Articles
  • Book Review
  • Archive
  • Contact Us

Ogwumike Sisters Raise Funds for Nigeria Education

June 13, 2014 by Admin Leave a Comment

Written by DOUG FEINBERG, AP Basketball Writer

(L-R) Sisters Chiney Ogwumike #13 and Nnemkadi Oqwumike #30 of the Stanford Cardinals look on during practice prior to the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament Final Four at Pepsi Center on March 31, 2012 in Denver, Colorado. (March 30, 2012 – Source: Doug Pensinger/Getty Images North America)

Nneka and Chiney Ogwumike have always valued education.

So it’s no surprise the Stanford graduates wanted to do something to help educate girls in their parents’ homeland of Nigeria. The WNBA stars launched a fundraising competition Wednesday that’s open to middle and high school basketball teams across the U.S. The goal is to raise money to support UNICEF programs focusing on girls’ education and empowerment.

The eventual goal is to give one million girls in Nigeria access to quality schooling by providing scholarships for female teachers and establishing safe places for girls to learn. The U.S.-born sisters, who became the second set of siblings drafted No. 1 in a major sports league — joining Peyton and Eli Manning — figured they could use their clout to help get it done.

“We want to be able to give back to Nigeria, and UNICEF is a great way,” Nneka Ogwumike said in a recent phone interview with The Associated Press. “We were blessed with an incredible education that we want to make sure others have an opportunity to have.”

The mass kidnappings of schoolgirls in the African nation have added a sense of urgency to the sisters’ desire to help. They had planned to get involved with UNICEF before the kidnappings, and were distraught to hear about the 300-plus girls taken in the remote northeast area of Nigeria in April.

“Everyone knows we’re Nigerian and that’s a huge part of us and our culture,” Chiney Ogwumike said. “To be able to extend our basketball connections to help others is great. The most important thing we can do is help educate people and we understand that’s a lot bigger than what we do on the court.”

Since 2012, teachers and students have been increasingly targeted by extremists, resulting in killings, abductions and threats. Many schools have been bombed, set on fire or attacked.

Nigeria has 10 million children out of school — the highest number in the world, according to Caryl Stern, president and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. She said the money raised will help with child protection, access to education, quality education and training teachers.

“These two young women understand that they’ve been given an amazing opportunity,” Stern said in a phone interview with the AP. “They’re very reachable and want to be a part of it, not just finance it.

“They want to motivate others to be a part of it. They want to build a movement, that’s what they are trying to do here. They want to be leaders in that movement.”

The team competition rewards those who sign up the most donors. The top prize is a private basketball clinic with the sisters.

“The biggest thing we want is for the kids to have fun with it,” said Chiney, the top pick in the WNBA draft by the Connecticut Sun in April. “Whatever there reason is for getting involved we support it. If you care about meeting Nneka and I, you can get donors. If you care about bring our girls back, go get donors. If you care about playing basketball and want to do something fun, you can get donors.”

Other prizes include autographed jerseys, pictures and the chance to interact with them via Google Hangouts.

“At the end of the day, this could be an annual thing that becomes huge and impacts the relief fund we’re trying to help,” said Nneka, who plays for the Los Angeles Sparks.

To join the Ogwumike’s challenge: www.crowdrise.com/nnekaandchiney

Filed Under: Strategic Research & Analysis

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

More to See

Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire have Declared war on the Global chocolate industry over cocoa prices (video)

March 20, 2023 By AFRIPOL

(video) I Will Never Call And Congratulate Sanwo-Olu For This Sham Of An Election – Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour

March 19, 2023 By AFRIPOL

RSS AllAfrica News: Latest

  • Africa: VP Harris Stresses Democracy During Africa Visit
    [VOA] Accra -- On the eve of her meeting with Africa's only female head of state, Vice President Kamala Harris said Wednesday that having more women in power is a key ingredient for a healthy democracy.
  • Rwanda: Paul Rusesabagina, Who Inspired Hotel Rwanda Film, Arrives in U.S.
    [DW] Paul Rusesabagina, whose efforts to save people during the 1994 genocide inspired the Hollywood film "Hotel Rwanda," has arrived in the US following his release from a Rwandan prison.
  • Congo-Kinshasa: UN Refugee Agency in Mozambique Appeals for Help to Aid DRC Refugees
    [VOA] Maputo, Mozambique -- The representative of the U.N. refugee agency in Mozambique said refugees fleeing war-torn parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo are making an already complicated humanitarian crisis in northern Mozambique even worse.
  • Burkina Faso: Burkina Faso Banning Free Press 'Bit By Bit', Says France 24 Journalist After Broadcaster's Suspension
    [VOA] Washington -- The journalist whose interview with a terrorist organization resulted in Burkina Faso suspending France 24 has spoken with VOA about what he says is a decline in media freedoms in the country.
  • Malawi: UN Concerned About Disease in Malawi's Displacement Camps
    [VOA] Blantyre, Malawi -- The U.N. humanitarian agency says Malawi needs immediate help to deal with diseases spreading in displacement camps for Cyclone Freddy survivors. The Malawi health minister told reporters Tuesday that the government is beefing up its medical staff but a local newspaper says the country needs more money to adequately deal with […]
  • Senegal: Senegal Braces for Fresh Protests Ahead of Opposition Leader's Trial
    [RFI] Senegal's opposition coalition maintained its call for demonstrations on Wednesday and Thursday during leader Ousmane Sonko's defamation trial despite a ban on protests by police authorities.

Tags

Achebe Africa Anambra Boko Haram Buhari CBN Corona Virus Egypt Igbo IMF Inflation Jonathan Kenya Nigeria Okonjo Iweala Peter Obi Sanusi Senate Soludo South Africa Soyinka United States
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Archives

Footer

Africa Political and Economic Strategic Center, AFRIPOL is foremost a public policy center whose fundamental objective is to broaden the parameters of public policy debates in Africa. To advocate, promote and encourage free enterprise, democracy, sustainable green environment, human rights, conflict resolutions, transparency and probity in Africa.

Recent

  • Ghana President Publicly ends Cocoa Export to Switzerland.
  • VP Kamala Harris Gives Emotional Speech After Visiting Cape Coast Castle In Ghana (video)
  • U.S Vice President Kamala Harris arrives at Ghana Jubilee House to meet President Akufo-Addo
  • US Vice President Kamala Harris arrives in Ghana for African tour (video, Pics)
  • Peter Obi exchanged views on the state of the nation with OBJ @ Anambra Airport (pics)

Search

Tags

Achebe Africa Anambra Boko Haram Buhari CBN Corona Virus Egypt Igbo IMF Inflation Jonathan Kenya Nigeria Okonjo Iweala Peter Obi Sanusi Senate Soludo South Africa Soyinka United States

Copyright © 2023 · AFRIPOL