Our Story
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” —Nelson Mandela
Girls and children with disabilities are deprived of their rights, feel discriminated against and often lack hope for the future. Societies are clearly not doing enough to realize the most basic human rights of all children. As a result, the vicious cycle of exclusion and disadvantage continues.
HOPE emerged from the founder’s firsthand witness of what happens to children with disabilities in African communities – the exclusion, the silence, and the quiet assumption that certain children simply do not deserve the same opportunities as everyone else. Noel Ifeanyi Alumona saw that gap clearly and refused to accept it. In 2012, he founded Hope for African Children on a single conviction: that the discrimination surrounding disability in Africa could be challenged, and that the children most often left behind deserved someone willing to do that work.
In 2012, Noel founded HOPE on a simple belief — that every child deserves access to education, health, and the opportunity to grow, regardless of ability or gender. From the beginning, the work was about changing the systems and community attitudes that kept certain children out in the first place.
By 2018, HOPE was formally registered as a nonprofit in Nigeria, with programming across education, health, sports, and wellbeing for women, girls, and children with disabilities. The work kept growing. HOPE earned its 501(c)(3) status in the United States and today operates across 13 African countries, building the kind of inclusive communities where no child is treated as an afterthought.
Since 2012, we’ve joined hands with families, practitioners, civil society organizations and governments. Our programs seamlessly integrate into existing education and health structures, while empowering local communities. We leverage data and technology to maximize results, ensuring the well-being of children and the communities we serve.
While bridging this gap, we’re working to transform the continent’s inclusion system and improve outcomes for the millions of girls, children and families it impacts every year. We partner with leaders, families and practitioners across Africa to create and implement disruptive, scalable solutions to reduce barriers, improve learning outcomes, equitable healthcare access, trauma-informed care, sports and equal opportunities for all children.
Led by Our Values
Collaboration
Inclusion
Community-centered
System-driven
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