Tolulope Habib became a British Council Test It Grant Winner in 2019 enabling her initiative to deepen the literacy learning of Nigerian children.
Through it, the British Council in Nigeria is making a major investment in human capacity development. One of its key programmes is the Children Education and Literacy Project under the 30 Books Challenge in conjunction with Tolulope’s enterprise, the Young Readers Library headquartered in Abuja.
The Young Readers Library is a social initiative to provide access to quality books and spur a love of reading in children. With the pace of digital distractions and the lure of the e-tablet, the library is designed to inspire the creativity and imagination that are the natural gifts of childhood.
She said: “I learnt a lot from the Business Acceleration Bootcamp which has really helped me grow my business. I learnt how to test ideas small and scale. I was also a beneficiary of the 250,000 Test it Grant.”
The first year, Tolulope tested a reading challenge that had a participation of 30 children. Later in the year, she sought the partnership of the British Council to scale the idea up to the 30 Books Challenge.
“The project was a success as I was able to execute the project in two cities, Lagos and Abuja. The participation grew from 30 to 190 participants. This year (2019) with the support of the British Council, the project has extended to more cities. This has given myself and business the capacity to touch more lives and improve the reading culture in Nigeria.”
So far, she adds, her new-found skills and contacts have enabled her business to impact more than1,000 children since her participation in the Boot Camp.