The world’s leading ICT training institute, New Horizons Nigeria, has unveiled a major Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative aimed at improving Nigeria’s GDP, reducing unemployment, and strengthening national security. The initiative, tagged “Almajiris-to-Tech,” is a comprehensive empowerment programme designed to take Almajiri children off the streets and equip them with practical, income-generating technical skills as computer and electronics technicians.
The scheme is structured to create public awareness and mobilise strategic partnerships, particularly with Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and government institutions, to address the Almajiri phenomenon through sustainable, humane, and non-kinetic solutions. New Horizons Nigeria says the initiative represents a deliberate shift from force-based approaches to empowerment-driven interventions.
Speaking on the programme, the Managing Director of New Horizons Nigeria, Mr. Tim Akano, said the continued presence of Almajiri children on the streets is not a failure of the children themselves but a reflection of broader societal negligence. He maintained that God has not created any human being useless, stressing that every individual is born free to pursue happiness and dignity. According to him, purely kinetic approaches cannot solve the Almajiri challenge; instead, a blend of kinetic and non-kinetic strategies, with strong emphasis on empowerment and reorientation, is required.
The Almajiris-to-Tech initiative is a 90-day intensive empowerment programme scheduled to commence on 19 January 2026. It is aimed at transforming Almajiri victims into skilled computer and electronics technicians. Participants will receive hands-on training in the repair and maintenance of laptops, desktops, projectors, telephones, radios, fans, inverter batteries, and other related electronic devices.
In addition, beneficiaries will be trained in innovative and environmentally sustainable practices, including the use of scrap laptop batteries (e-waste) to power rechargeable fans, build UPS batteries, and construct inverter batteries. Training will also cover laptop and desktop repairs, mobile phone repairs, as well as television, fan, and projector repairs.
Recognising that true empowerment begins with mindset transformation, the first week of the programme will focus on mind re-orientation. This phase will feature structured sessions facilitated by a psychologist and an elite Imam, delivered in the Hausa language. The sessions are designed to reprogramme participants away from violence, hopelessness, and begging, while instilling values such as confidence, discipline, responsibility, love, and hope. Topics including good citizenship, patriotism, the virtues of hard work, and good neighbourliness will be taught.
The programme will take place at the New Horizons Training Centre in Abuja and will be implemented in two batches. The first batch is reserved for key empowerment stakeholders. Ten slots have been allocated to the People Expertise and Excellence Foundation (PEEF), an NGO focused on skill acquisition and human capital development, while another ten slots have been allocated to Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola (Yayi).
Senator Yayi, a widely respected youth empowerment advocate, has previously facilitated the training of over 5,000 youths across South-West Nigeria through New Horizons Nigeria. His inclusion in the scheme is intended to extend his youth empowerment efforts to Northern Nigeria, particularly within Almajiri communities.
Almajiris Scheme Targets Jobs, Security, and GDP Growth
At the conclusion of the training, New Horizons Nigeria has assured that participants will not be left unsupported. Graduates will be assisted with market placement, provided with suitable locations to operate, and formally settled as New Horizons Computer Technicians. The best graduating Almajiri will receive full funding and a complete set of business tools to immediately begin independent practice. Throughout the training period, New Horizons will also supply essential tools for practical sessions, including screwdrivers and other technical equipment.
To demonstrate its commitment, New Horizons Nigeria is investing ₦50 million in the project. The funding will cover participants’ feeding, T-shirts, logistics, training materials, and the provision of working tools. The organisation noted that this empowerment model is not new, citing its successful implementation during the Amnesty Programme under former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, where over 5,000 repentant militants were reprogrammed and gainfully employed, as well as the World Bank youth empowerment programme that trained over 1,000 youths.
As part of the programme’s conclusion, a competition will be organised in which participants will be divided into four teams—Team Shettima, Team Akpabio, Team Abbas, and Team Yayi. Each team will be tasked with building and branding a personal computer (PC) with their team name.
New Horizons will also provide post-training support through a dedicated technical portal for trained and certified participants. The portal will contain participants’ names, photographs, phone numbers, certificate numbers, and guardian details, serving as a verification and engagement platform.
Nigerians and foreign supporters interested in Nigeria’s transformation have been urged to support the New Horizons Almajiris-to-Tech Empowerment Scheme by visiting www.almajiritotech.com to learn how to be part of what the organisation describes as “true patriots” committed to changing Nigeria’s global narrative.
The second phase of the Almajiris-to-Tech Empowerment Scheme is scheduled for the second quarter of 2026. New Horizons Nigeria is calling on NGOs, government agencies, institutions, and leaders genuinely committed to peace, development, and national transformation to partner in scaling the programme’s impact. Interested partners can contact New Horizons Nigeria via 08125541750 or 08066271346, or visit its training facility at Hall F, 1st Floor, Febson Mall, Zone 4, Wuse, Abuja.
Reiterating its philosophy, the organisation said the solution to street roaming is not force but opportunity, noting that with the right skill set and support, the estimated 15 million Almajiris are more potent than oil in changing Nigeria’s narrative. Turning them into a productive economic force, it said, addresses low productivity, terrorism, and acute poverty simultaneously.
According to New Horizons CEO, Tim Akano, the initiative is part of the organisation’s practical contribution to the actualisation of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Tinubu administration. He stated that fixing the Almajiri problem is central to Nigeria’s overall national stability, as “devil finds work for idle hands.”
New Horizons further disclosed that from the first week of April 2026, the first set of Almajiris-to-Tech graduates will be fully equipped to repair telephone handsets, laptops, desktops, projectors, televisions, radios, inverters, and other electronic devices. The organisation concluded that deploying the 15 million Almajiris through the Almajiris-to-Tech initiative represents a low-hanging fruit for increasing Nigeria’s GDP by $20 billion in 2027, with immediate economic impact at an estimated GDP contribution of $1,200 per person.
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