The programs we run in order to achieve the goals set by New Life Foundation fall into 2 segments:
1. The R-E-V-I-V-E programs
2. The New Leaf Skills Acquisition Programs
The R-E-V-I-V-E programs
(a) Re-Entry programs
Under the re-entry programs, NLF liaises with Nigeria’s Ministry of Interior, to ensure that inmates who are due for release within 18months undergo a training and guidance program, to prepare them to settle comfortably in free society.
These programs encompass imparting technical knowhow to the trainees to ensure that former inmates are in a position to establish for themselves a reliable source of income for their families, which helps them gain respect in the community.
Former inmates who earn a decent living and feel a sense of belonging are unlikely to revert to crime. Nevertheless, NLF still extends this program teach inmates about the kind of reception they should expect once released from prison, and the best way to respond to negative attention.
We also keep our doors open for those who have gone through our programs, in case they face barriers and need our support. We are particularly keen on providing professional counseling to the former inmates and their families in a bid to enable successful re-integration and a good quality of life.
The R-E-V-I-V-E programs
(b) Free Legal Aid services
NLF has its own legal representatives, and their role is to help Nigeria’s inmates to access justice and have it without undue delay. Among the things these representatives teach the inmates is their right to bail, as well as the opportunities and avenues that they can utilize to appeal against unjust sentences.
In addition to the legal aspect, NLF also funds the legal processes that are geared towards assisting disadvantaged inmates and their families. Such financial support extends also to families whose loved ones have been unjustly confined, or have become victims of murder within the prison system.
The New Leaf Skills Acquisition Program
In the Skills Acquisition program, inmates learn practical skills that prepare them to earn a living and become productive once released from prison. It is a vocational training program where inmates, with the help of NLF training personnel, choose marketable skills that they can enjoy and use to develop a trade.
NLF finds the money spent on this program to be of immeasurable value because skilled former inmates normally find it relatively easy to re-integrate in their respective communities. They gain self- esteem and because they are gainfully employed, the community is at ease and should not feel threatened by former inmates. Some even establish successful businesses based on the trade learned through NLF’s programs, and they become respectable employers in their community.
NLF has established the skills that are marketable amongst Nigerian communities, and they are continuously studying the market to see what other skills they can add to the program.
