F ormer Miss Valentine 2007, Mariam Elisha, is taking  time off  beauty and the runway to cater for the less
  privileged children in the society, through her Non- Governmental Organisation, Rikaoto,  a fashion and lifestyle outfit, geared at improving the standard of living of the less privileged within our society.

Marian Elisha.

Inspiration ehind  the initiative t is estimated world  wide that most  children are being pushed out to the streets everyday in a continuous struggle for survival, with a lot of them hawking and engaging in menial jobs. The risk that these children face is one that we cannot overlook, hence our first duty is to take them off the streets, through a systematic and guided approach.

This year, we are working with street kids drawn from various background and circumstances alongside orphans. Our focus is to sow in the children directly and with support from well meaning individuals and corporate bodies, provide their basic needs which include academic aid, feeding, medical care, and lifestyle enhancement.

I love children and I was driving on a raining day and I wanted to buy oranges and I saw a little girl whom I later came to know as Ekaete. Upon much prodding, she told me she stayed alone under the bridge. No parent, nobody. There and then, I gave her my number and later went to visit her, that was how it started. I was moved and at that point, I decided that I should reach out to as many as I can and give them some kind of helping hand to get them off the streets. That girl is  now at an orphanage at Ota and she is also in school. We help them as often as they need it.

Academics
The project also recognises the need for an all-round reform vis-à-vis the fact that education is the bedrock of knowledge and that it also plays a key role in the shaping and development of a future for today’s children.
Therefore, the children are provided with up-to-date academic aids such as internet-ready computers, academic textbooks, exercise books, story books, visual and hearing aids, writing materials and unique in- house developed learning materials.”

Creativity/skill
Acquiring vocational skills through this project will be of immense encouragement to keep the kids off the streets while enabling them to support themselves and even members of their various families and also add economically to the GDP of the nation.

Through services and sales of the products from the vocations such as: tie and dye, event decoration, carpentry, shoemaking, bead-making, cooking and baking, hairdressing, etc.
From time to time, their works will be showcased.

For children with unique skills in the arts such as acting, singing, dancing and drawing, the STT project will work hard to ensure that their talents are showcased to the world via TV, and regular feature on the project website. The children will also be given the rare privilege of working with the top ace of the entertainment industry which include some of the Tomorrow-Today Ambassadors.

With this, we will not just be developing the skills and talents but also preparing them to become not just leaders of tomorrow, but also the stars of tomorrow.

Fun Time
With a view to creating a conducive atmosphere for the children to grow and still be able to have that playful and unique thing that makes them different from adults, for as we all know “all work and no play, makes Jack a dull boy,” the project aims to have this as one of its key components. The children will be given toys, games, and other fun things for their age.

Also routine outings will be organised and this will serve as forums for the children to meet and socialize with their peer. This, we hope will come three to four times a month, and it will give them a chance to go on tours, engage in  sports, play games, choreograph and get to spend time with our TT-Ambassadors. They will also be meeting with different personalities like governors, ministers, actors, musicians etc. We believe this will not only mentor them but also make them aspire to be like them.

Parental Aid
Parents of the beneficiaries will not be left out. Rather, the project will work with them to keep the children off the streets by assisting the parents acquire training and SME funding in order for them to start up a business or trade of their choice. The business will be monitored by the project to ensure accountability and progress. And we believe this will ensure the long-term sustainability of the programme.

Clothing
Taking children off the streets requires providing them with basic amenities which put them on the streets in the first place; such as clothes and foot- wear, which are necessary in order to protect them from harsh climatic conditions such as harmattan, heat and rains.

As a fashion company, this is our key concern, and we know very well that the way one dresses affects his level of confidence. We  hope to make the children imbibe a strong sense of belief in themselves, we will make it a key point of the project to ensure the children on the project’s list have all the much needed outfits ranging from play time to uniforms, outing and home wears, which will all be from the Rikaoto fashion line.

Challenges
Having worked with the children for 7 to 8 months, I must say that getting the children off the streets is no easy task. It is difficult convincing some of their parents of our intentions. We have difficulty in getting people to support what we are doing. But with time, we believe we will get there, when they see all we have done, and the children themselves are there to testify.

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