Group launches mentorship programme to check juvenile crimes in Rivers

To reduce the spate of juvenile crimes and equip young boys with basic societal values, a non-governmental organisation, identified as Equip Boy Child Project (EBCP) has launched a mentorship programme aimed at grooming the boy child for leadership roles in society.

The programme, convened by Patrick Uduma, is designed to address the growing concern of juvenile crimes and the lack of positive role models for young boys.

According to Uduma, the project was inspired by his own personal experiences and the realisation that many boys are not being adequately mentored or guided.

“You can realise that we have few programmes that tailor and design to engineer the boys, but we want leadership, we want good husbands, leaders, good entrepreneurs, and valued people,” Uduma said.

The programme, which focuses on boys between the ages of 9 and 20, a critical period in their development, helps to offer guidance to develop positive values and habits in the boys.

Speaking in an interview, Uduma noted that one of the challenges the project faced was convincing parents to allow their children to participate.

Despite the challenges, Uduma noted that the project has made significant progress, with 15 boys graduating from the programme.

He noted that the project used a coaching approach, with a small number of participants to ensure individual attention, adding that the coaching phase lasts for six months, after which the participants graduate but continue to attend general classes where they interact with other participants.

Meanwhile, parents testified to the positive impact of the initiative on their children, saying that it was a game-changer.

A parent, Lagha Charles said; “My son is here today for the boy child project graduation. The project has been phenomenal, the change it has brought in the life of my son is amazing. My son tells me that he wants to be a channel of outreach and to be a blessing to others.”

Charles encouraged other parents to bring their boy children to be mentored and trained, saying: “In society, what you hear about is the girl child, but the boys are also in need of guidance and mentorship.

Today, the boys are under peer pressure, joining cults at an early age and getting involved in unimaginable vices.”

Denubari Benjamin, one of the graduates, shared his experience, saying, “I am a life saver in a good place, the project has helped me very well. Before I was a boy that always liked to play, thinking that life is just a game, just like going with the flow. But now that I have got mentorship, I have learnt more, I have learnt about our core values, and other aspects of life.”