(L-R) Cross section of participants with
The 2025 edition of the Nonprofit Leadership and Management Youth Academy (NPLM-YA) was held from May 2 to July 4, 2025. Delivered by the Lagos Business School Sustainability Centre and supported by Ford Foundation West Africa, the programme is a flagship initiative aimed at strengthening the leadership and management capacities of young changemakers in Nigeria’s nonprofit space. Since its inception, the NPLM-YA programme has nurtured a growing network of high-impact youth leaders across the country, many of whom now lead or contribute significantly to mission-driven organisations advancing social justice and sustainable development.
The 2025 edition featured a hybrid delivery model; a blend of online learning modules and in-person immersion over a period of 9 weeks, designed to provide participants with practical knowledge and strategic insight needed to thrive in the evolving social sector landscape. Over the course of the nine-week certificate programme, participants explored a wide range of critical themes including authentic leadership, nonprofit governance, project planning and implementation, fundraising, financial management, stakeholder engagement, monitoring and evaluation, branding, communications, and social innovation. Facilitated by leading experts and practitioners in the development sector, the programme was designed to build technical skills, foster ethical leadership, and deepen participants’ understanding of cross-cutting issues such as gender, inclusion, accountability, and sustainability.
The in-person immersion, held at the Lagos Business School campus on July 3 and 4, 2025, provided opportunities for practical learning through leadership clinics, storytelling workshops, collaborative project pitches, and fireside chats with senior nonprofit professionals and sector leaders. By the end of the programme, participants were equipped not only with tools to build effective and resilient organisations but also with the courage and clarity to scale their social impact initiatives and foster systems change in their communities and beyond.
Participants were introduced to the fundamental principles of inclusive leadership and social accountability, as well as the operational challenges and governance responsibilities that come with managing mission-driven organisations. Special attention was paid to feminist leadership approaches and systems thinking, critical lenses through which participants learned to respond to the complex and intersectional issues confronting communities today.
A standout moment of the in-person sessions was the capstone project presentations. Participants, working in teams, pitched strategic nonprofit solutions to real-world challenges, drawing on the knowledge and tools gained during the programme. The projects demonstrated their ability to apply leadership, innovation, and practical insight to social impact work, underscoring their readiness to lead with purpose and drive meaningful change.
Speaking on the impact of the programme, Oreva Atanya, Director of the LBS Sustainability Centre, and Lead Facilitator of the NPLM Youth Academy, said, “At the core of this programme is our commitment to developing responsible and effective managers and leaders to shape economies and society. The Academy strengthened their organisational management capacities but also cultivated an ethical, inclusive and collaborative spirit that will serve them well in building sustainable projects, initiatives, movements and communities for change.”
She added, “These young change makers are stepping into a demanding space at a critical time. The programme, which the Ford Foundation supports, has prepared them to be leaders who have a gender and social inclusion outlook, ethical conduct, professionalism, an innovative and entrepreneurial mindset as they respond to society’s most pressing challenges.”
As this year’s cohort begins to apply their learning in diverse contexts, their commitment to ethical leadership, innovation, and systems change will be instrumental in shaping a more just and inclusive future for all. The Lagos Business School Sustainability Centre remains committed to providing a platform where emerging nonprofit executives can learn, connect, and lead with purpose.
Lagos Business School is Africa’s leading management education institution and the LBS Sustainability Centre is a leading knowledge centre that brings together the theory and practice on business and sustainability for the advancement of performance and development outcomes. For more information about the initiatives and upcoming events of the Lagos Business School Sustainability Centre, please contact sustainabilitycentre@lbs.edu.ng. Together we can work towards a sustainable future for businesses and communities on the continent. For more information on our programmes, visit: https://sustainabilitycentre.lbs.edu.ng/training/
