[Special Feature] Nigerian Women Moving To A Green World

Nigerian women; Jife Williams and Adeola Asabia, are in the quest of touching millions of life and making a fortune from toilets, sewage and waste, three words women will never think can become a business idea. As 2009 Laureates for Africa of the Cartier Women’s Initiative Adeola Asabia and Jife Williams set up a dynamic business that also meets one of the most salient human needs.

The Cartier Women’s Initiative is a global business plan competition run by Cartier, the Women’s Forum, McKinsey Company and INSEAD Business School which recognizes excellence in entrepreneurship in women from all over the world. Their application for the launch of MN Environmental Services was selected from a pool of 820 business plans and a shortlist of three top African applicants to win one year of coaching support, $20,000 grant and an exclusive trophy designed by Cartier.

The project is already working in Lagos, Metamorphosis-Nigeriaproviding relief to 4000 Lagos traders in partnership with the Lagos state government. It is spectacular for these women that can take their experiences from home and offer different perspectives in business, with the establishment of Metamorphosis-Nigeria, a non-governmental organization, with primary focus on improving the quality of life, and opportunities for positive change in urban communities through projects that improve the environment and promote safe sanitary and hygiene practices.

Metamorphosis-Nigeria through their commitment for the next 5 years hopes to replicate our public convenience model in many high density locations within in Nigeria; and to educate the teeming population of the health benefits of good hygiene and sanitary practices in a bid to bring about a change in the prevalent social behaviour of urinating and defecating indiscriminately.

Welcome to Metamorphosis Nigeria
Metamorphosis-Nigeria is a non-governmental organization with primary focus on improving the quality of life and opportunities for positive change in urban communities through projects that improve the environment and promote safe sanitary and hygiene practices.Metamorphosis strongly believes that sustainable socio-economic development can only be achieved through partnerships between Government, civil society, private sector and donor agencies, but first, individuals must also take actions by helping to solve some of the challenges of living.

Mode of operation

Metamorphosis strongly believes that sustainable socio-economic development can only be achieved through partnerships between Government, civil society, private sector and donor agencies.

We work in urban areas that are highly populated to gain maximum impact from our interventions. Targeted areas include busy motor parks, markets, commuter points and poor community settlements lacking access to safe water and sanitary facilities.Hygiene education

& Attitudinal change

During and after construction of public convenience facilities, stakeholders in the target area are taught on safe hygiene and sanitation practices which are geared to bringing about behaviour change on environment and sanitation issues.Award Winning

Strategy
Metamorphosis is directly involved in the maintenance of public convenience facilities funded by her partners. Implementing their award winning strategy, workers are employed by Metamorphosis (preferably drawn from those residing near the location site).

This creates added job opportunities for the poor and disadvantaged. Staff are trained and provided with proper cleaning equipment. The facility is open to the public at an affordable fee of N20.00 for using the toilet (which is equivalent to about 16 cent). N30.00 is charged for shower facilities (which are equivalent to about 24 cent). Proceeds from fee collected go towards paying staff salaries, maintenance costs and other development initiatives needed in or near the location site. This ensures project sustainability.

Women of Change

Prior to setting up MN Environmental Services, Jife had worked in the banking industry and also on a development project which provided public toilets to a parking area in Lagos that served about 600 people. Adeola was trained as a lawyer but did not practice; instead she went into the banking industry which she eventually chose to leave. They met because their children went to the same school and both shared the desire to ‘do something’; thus the idea for Metamorphosis emerged. The extreme need for sanitation in the megacity of Lagos motivated them to develop this business idea. 

Sponsor or Co-sponsor the construction of a facility and hygiene education for stakeholdersIf you choose to sponsor the construction of a facility and hygiene education of the stakeholders, you will be given a list of the upcoming developments to enable you make a choice of location. You will be informed about the whole process through preliminary meeting, reports and invitation to site during the duration of project implementation. Upon completion of construction, when facility is up and running, you will be given a quarterly progress report about the performance of the facility.

Contact Metamorphosis Nigeria:
Flat 1B2, 17-19, Boyle Street, Onikan, Lagos.
Lagos, Lagos
Nigeria Tel:
Email:
http://metamorphosis-nigeria.org