Restanchor Total Child Parenting Foundation, Ibadan has announced plans to establish a ₦500 million endowment fund to support vulnerable children and widows as part of efforts to expand its humanitarian interventions.

The president and founder of the foundation, Pastor Prince Leye Adefioye, disclosed this in Ibadan during the organisation’s 20th anniversary celebration, held at the Local Government Building Hall, State Secretariat, Agodi.

The event had the theme, “Protecting Children, Preserving Humanity, Securing the Future.”

Adefioye said the proposed endowment was part of the foundation’s plans for the next 20 years, alongside efforts to strengthen child-protection systems, expand educational and psychosocial support, and promote economic empowerment for widows and vulnerable families.

He said the foundation was established in 2006 on the conviction that no child should be denied a future because of poverty, orphanhood, abuse, neglect or difficult family circumstances.

According to him, Restanchor has supported vulnerable children, widows and families through educational assistance, food and humanitarian support, psychosocial care, child protection, advocacy and empowerment programmes over the past two decades.

He described the anniversary as an opportunity to reflect on the lives touched and opportunities created through the foundation’s interventions.

The founder said some former beneficiaries had become educated professionals, responsible parents and contributors to their communities, while others had begun supporting people in need.

However, he expressed concern over the continued challenges facing children, including trafficking, exploitation, poverty, family disintegration and emerging digital threats.

He called on government, corporate organisations, development partners, philanthropists and individuals to support the foundation through donations, partnerships, sponsorships and technical assistance.

Adefioye said sustainable partnerships were necessary to ensure that children from disadvantaged backgrounds had access to education, protection and opportunities to build better futures.

Speaking at the event, the chairman, Dr Moronkola Thomas, Director-General of the Oyo State Mobilisation Agency for Socio-Economic Development, called for stronger collaboration among government, parents, teachers, civil society organisations and the private sector to address the challenge of out-of-school children.

Thomas, a former Oyo State Commissioner for Education, said the responsibility for children’s education, health and general welfare should not be left to government alone.

“Government alone cannot do it. Government alone does not do it anywhere in the world. All of us must see it as our responsibility to cater for our children, their health, education and general wellbeing,” he said.

He lauded Restanchor for supporting children from disadvantaged backgrounds and urged parents, particularly fathers, to take greater responsibility for their children’s upbringing.

Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Oyo State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Mrs Bamidele Toyin Oyinloye, praised the foundation for its contributions to expanding educational opportunities for vulnerable children.

Oyinloye said some children lost access to education following the death of a parent or a decline in their families’ financial circumstances.

She also noted that some parents were reluctant to transfer their children from private to public schools when they could no longer afford the fees because of concerns about social stigma.

She stressed the need to make public education accessible and ensure that schools had enough teachers to meet pupils’ learning needs.

The officials urged stakeholders to sustain support for initiatives that protect vulnerable children, reduce barriers to education and improve the welfare of disadvantaged families.