Ajayi Akinfolarin
Cable
News Network (CNN), has named a 2017 alumna of the United States
government-sponsored International Visitors Leadership Program
(IVLP), Ms. Abisoye Ajayi-Akinfolarin, as one of the Top 10 CNN
Heroes of the Year.
Ajayi-Akinfolarin’s
organization, Pearls Africa Foundation, which she founded in 2012,
assists girls from underserved communities in Nigeria gain relevant
technological skills to transform their lives. The beneficiaries get
training in HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python and Scratch and visit tech
companies to reinforce their learning and broaden their horizons.
Her GirlsCoding project
has reached more than 400 beneficiaries, including girls from
orphanages and correctional homes, in addition to young women fleeing
the violence perpetrated by Boko Haram. The GirlsCoding project
is being supported by the U.S. Consulate General Lagos.
In
2017, Ajayi-Akinfolarin also founded Lady Labs Innovation Hub, a
female-focused tech centre which caters specifically to the
technological needs of female university students enrolled in the
STEM fields of study and female entrepreneurs.
The
graduate of the University of Lagos participated in a three-week IVLP
exchange program focusing on “Education and Activism for Young
Women.” The International Visitors Leadership Program is the U.S.
State Department’s premier professional exchange program.
CNN
described the 10 finalists as “remarkable trailblazers who have
truly changed the world.” Each Top 10 CNN Hero will be
awarded $10,000 and the CNN Hero of the Year will receive an
additional $100,000. The honorees will also receive free
capacity-building training from the Annenberg Foundation, a leading
supporter of nonprofits worldwide.
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