Whitefield Foundation began in 2003 with a simple desire: to help people who were struggling to access opportunities that could change their lives.
We started in Lagos by supporting children from low-income families with education. Over the years, that small beginning has grown into a nationwide organisation working with women, young people, students, families and communities across Nigeria.
Today, our work spans education, vocational and digital skills, entrepreneurship, livelihoods, and relief support. Since 2003, we have reached more than 320,000 Nigerians through our programmes, partnerships and community interventions.
But behind every number is a person.
A child who was able to stay in school.
A young woman who learned a skill and started earning.
A small business owner who received the tools needed to grow.
A family that received help when a crisis threatened their livelihood.
That is what drives us.
Where It All Began
Whitefield Foundation grew out of the personal experiences of our founder and CEO, Dr. Funmi Johnson. Growing up as the only girl among four brothers, Funmi experienced firsthand what it meant to have limited access to quality education. Her husband’s story also left a deep impression on her. He was orphaned at just 11 years old, experienced significant disruption to his education, and had to learn to earn a living at a very young age.
These experiences created a deep understanding of what poverty and limited opportunity can do to a person’s choices and future. Whitefield Foundation was born from that understanding. It began with a desire to make sure that other children, women and young people would have someone willing to stand with them when circumstances made life harder than it should be.
More Than 20 Years of Work
For more than two decades, we have worked across Nigeria to connect people with practical opportunities. We have supported students to stay in school, helped young people acquire employable skills, equipped women to start and grow businesses, supported families during difficult times, and worked with communities to improve access to education and livelihoods.
Our programmes have reached people in all 36 states of Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory.
Our current work focuses particularly on women and young people because we have seen what happens when people who have been excluded from opportunity are given the right support, skills and encouragement.
Education: Sometimes the First Opportunity Is Simply Staying in School
Education has always been at the heart of Whitefield Foundation.
We have provided scholarships, examination support, tutorial classes, ICT training, learning materials and improved learning spaces for students in public schools.
One of the young people whose story continues to remind us why this work matters is Eunice Stephen.
At 16, Eunice had dropped out of secondary school after becoming pregnant. She faced stigma and struggled with her confidence and sense of identity. Through counselling and our Education Support Scheme, she was given another opportunity to continue her education. She went on to complete secondary school and later graduated from the University of Lagos in 2019 with a Second Class Upper degree in Education.
Today, she is married, earns a living, and is building a future for herself and her family.
Eunice’s story is one of many. It reminds us that sometimes what changes a person’s life is simply having someone say, “You can still do this.”
Our education programmes have supported thousands of students through scholarships, JAMB/UTME tutorials, STEM support, ICT training and improvements to public-school learning environments.
Giving Students Better Places to Learn
We have also seen how much a learning environment matters.
In many public schools, students are expected to learn without adequate textbooks, functional libraries, laptops, or appropriate learning resources. That is why we have invested in library development and learning spaces.
In 2025 alone, we renovated and equipped libraries in two Lagos schools, giving 534 students immediate access to improved library facilities and current textbooks while repositioning the school for hundreds of students who will be passing through it. For us, a library is more than shelves and books. It is a place where a student can discover something new, prepare for an examination, develop confidence and begin to imagine a different future.
Skills That Lead to Income
We also know that education must connect to economic opportunity.
For a young person who needs to earn a living, or a woman trying to support her family, learning a practical skill can make a real difference.
Our vocational, digital, employability and entrepreneurship programmes are designed with this reality in mind.
Through programmes such as EQUIP and the SHAPE Series, we have trained women and young people in practical skills that can be applied in the workplace, in business and in everyday life.
EQUIP has reached 96,491 women and young people across Nigeria, while the SHAPE Series has reached 20,770 women and girls nationwide.
Participants have received training, mentoring, grants, business support and practical tools such as laptops, makeup kits, massage beds and electrical and mechanical toolkits.
Across our broader skills and livelihoods work, more than 120,000 people have been reached through EQUIP, SHAPE, BRIDGE for Her, BRIDGE Centre and related interventions.
From Learning a Skill to Building a Livelihood
One of our greatest lessons over the years is that training is only the beginning.
People need opportunities to use what they have learned.
They may need a sewing machine, a laptop, a business grant, a mentor, customers, a connection to an employer, or simply someone who believes they are ready for the next step.
That is why we try to connect training with practical support.
Anu Oshilaja, founder of Annyz Bag, is one example.
After participating in the SHAPE programme in 2019, she strengthened her shoemaking and bag-making skills and gained business and entrepreneurship knowledge. She later received financial support from Whitefield Foundation to acquire an industrial machine and grow her business.
Her journey reflects what we want our programmes to achieve: not simply a certificate at the end of training, but greater confidence, stronger skills and a better chance of earning a sustainable income.
Standing With Communities in Difficult Times
Not every intervention starts with a training room or a classroom.
Sometimes people need help because a flood has destroyed their livelihood. Sometimes a family needs food. Sometimes a medical bill becomes too much to bear.
Whitefield Foundation has responded to these realities through relief and recovery programmes.
Through Operation LADDER, we supported 52,554 people affected by the 2022 floods and provided agricultural support to 2,800 smallholder farmers, 80 percent of whom were women, to help them rebuild their livelihoods.
We regularly provide food and health support to vulnerable households during periods of crisis.
In 2025, our Season of Giving programme provided school supplies to 200 pubic school pupils and food support to 200 low-income households, reaching more than 1,000 people in the community.
These interventions may look different from our education and skills programmes, but they come from the same place: responding to real needs with practical support.
Women and Young People at the Centre
Women and young people have always been central to our work.
We have met women who had skills but lacked the tools to start. Young people who were willing to work but had no marketable skills. Students who were capable but at risk of dropping out. Families whose circumstances made basic needs difficult to meet.
These experiences have shaped how we design our programmes.
We focus on practical skills, access to opportunity, mentorship, digital inclusion, and support that helps people move forward.
Our work is increasingly incorporating digital skills, AI, and technology because the world of work is changing. We want women and young people from underserved communities to have a fair chance to participate in that changing economy.
We Cannot Do This Alone
Whitefield Foundation’s story is also a story of partnership.
Over the years, individuals, companies, foundations, government institutions, community organisations and other partners have trusted us to deliver programmes in communities.
Their support has helped put books on shelves, skills in people’s hands, food on family tables and tools in the hands of people ready to work.
Partners include The Coca-Cola Foundation, Sterling On Foundation, Alliance for Youth Nigeria, Infobip, Nestlé West Africa, Jobberman, UN Global Compact Network Nigeria and Blackbaud/Sony Music West Africa, and hundreds of individuals, who supported different aspects of our programme delivery.
We remain grateful for every partnership.
What Comes Next
We have learned a lot since 2003.
We have also learned that there is still much more to do.
Our experience shows that our vocational training model works across the country. We are building on that experience as we expand our reach, strengthen digital and virtual learning, integrate AI tools and skills into trade, improve post-training support, and create stronger pathways from skills to employment and enterprise.
Our vision is to impact one million lives by 2030 through education and economic empowerment.
We know that one organisation cannot solve Nigeria’s challenges alone.
But we also know what can happen when people, organisations and communities work together.
One student gets another chance.
One woman starts earning.
One young person finds a pathway to work.
One family gets through a difficult season.
And over time, those individual changes add up.
That is the work we are committed to continuing.
