With the winners AMBA & BGA Excellence Awards due to be announced on 7 February 2020, we’re featuring profiles of the MBA students and graduates shortlisted for these prestigious accolades. Today, we meet Comfort Onyanta Alli a graduate of Lagos Business School who is finalist in the category of MBA Entrepreneurial Award (not-for-profit sector)
Comfort Onyanta Alli is the Project Director of Street Child Care and Welfare Initiative (SCCWI), a not-for-profit organisation that caters for the welfare of street children in Nigeria, with affiliations in France, Belgium, and Canada.
Her path into social work started 12 years ago at the inception of SCCWI as a volunteer before taking over as the Project Manager in 2009. In 2012 she became a member of the Board of SCCWI NGO and in 2014 was elected the President of the Board a position she still holds till date.
Comfort is a licenced HR professional, an alumna of the University of Nigeria Nsukka, Enugu State Nigeria, where she holds a BSc in geography. She is an associate of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management; Nigerian Institute of Training and Development; Graduate Member, Nigerian Institute of Management (Chartered).
She holds a certificate in social sector management from the Enterprise Development Centre of the Pan Atlantic University sponsored by African American Institute (AAI), certificate in child protection from Golda Meir Mount Carmel International Training Centre Haifa- Israel sponsored by the Israeli Government through MASHAV and an Executive MBA from Lagos Business School. She also holds management level certificates from IESE Business School, Barcelona, IE Business School, Madrid and Yale School of Management Connecticut, USA.
Comfort is an affiliate of the National Association of Social Workers, Maryland, UNICEF/Child Protection Network Nigeria, and Gender Based Violence Response Network of Lagos.
Have you always aspired to be an entrepreneur?
Making a positive impact in my community, Nigeria, and the world has always been my aspiration. While growing up, and nurturing this aspiration, I became convinced that entrepreneurship would be the most effective way to bring to life my ideas towards making a difference in my community. Looking back all these years, I am always humbled by how much impact made through entrepreneurship solving problems using creative solutions and collaborating with great teams doing the same.
Growing up in Lagos, Nigeria, I was very passionate about education. I took seriously the vocation of tutoring and coaching younger people. I recall, with a grin, my nine-year old self conducting my own little tutorial class. Thanks to my dad who bought me a board and plenty chalks. Many of my friends were not lucky to have parents who could send them to school. In our neighborhood many were street hawkers and they became my pupils.
Without wanting to sound trite, I have always had a deep sense of the importance of education, especially as a prime factor for breaking out of the stranglehold of poverty. My idealism in this regards motivated my pragmatic approach to the absolute need of financial power as an enabler of the difference I will make. On the side, I learnt street trading of seasonal goods at a young age and gained practical understanding of the value chain. So for me the journey didn’t just start.
If you were to win this award, how would that make a difference to you and your organisation?
Winning this award would boost my motivation to keep scaling up the things I do to impact my community. It will heighten our push and doggedness as an organisation, despite challenges. The prestige of this award coming from AMBA, which is known for celebrating excellence globally will add to taking our enterprise to the next level.
It is always a great feeling to know that our work is seen and appreciated. I will also use the Vixens platform to support startups, small businesses and charities through digital marketing and Public Relations coaching and consultancy on very discounted rates as well as pro bono (for charities). Currently, we enjoy the result of the support we are giving the Street Child Care and Welfare Initiative which has significantly increased sponsorships and grants for their laudable work for street kids in Lagos State.
This award will also serve as an additional validation of the great job Street Child Care and Welfare Initiative team is doing. The Charity has just launched two key projects for out of school children in a slum and a dumpsite starting in January 2020 which will run for 12 months in its first Phase. The publicity we will enjoy from this will give us the necessary push that will attract additional stakeholders in ensuring that we fulfil our mission.
I live by a quote from Winston Churchill: ‘We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give’. Receiving this recognition would surely add to our credibility as we continue to give our time, skills and experience towards continued positive change in our community.
