Late Pastor Dare Adeboye, who died on the 4th of May,2021 has been immortalized with a foundation establised in his name.
The mandate of the Dare Adeboye Foundation, launched on June 9th 2021 is to further the visions and ideals of the late charismatic senior Youth Pastor in RCCG, who was known for massive development and empowerment of young people.
Aged 42, Dare Adeboye was the second son of the General Overseer, Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye. He died in his sleep after ministering the previous day at his parish in Eket, Akwa Ibom State.
To mark the first anniversary of his death, the Pastor Dare Adeboye Foundation hosted the maiden edition of its Change and Leadership Forum on 4th May,2022 at the Redemption Camp, Ogun State.
Delivering the keynote address at the event, a former World Bank Vice President as well as Nigeria’s Education Minister, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili eulogized late Pastor Dare Adeboye , describing him as a silent and unsung driver, promoter and pillar of sustainable development and nation building.
She shared their mutual fondness for young people and Nigeria and urged the leadership of the Foundation to sustain and institutionalize the late Pastor Dare’s passion. .
Speaking on Africa’s opportunities to fast track sustainable development, she stated that if the continent gets it right, it would take it shorter time than it took China to develop.
According to Dr. Ezekwesili with good policies, focused leadership that involves young people and disruptive technologies, Africa will break all obstacles to development.
She stated that, “it is Africa’s moment, if Africa gets it, it would take Africa shorter time-span than it took China to happen”.
Dr. Ezekwesili who expressed regret that the continent missed the Agricultural Revolution, Industrial Revolution and a bit of the Knowledge Revolution; believed that the continent now has the opportunity to break even with the current ICT revolution, that has seen about a billion Africans having access to mobile phones.
“Africa missed the Agricultural Revolution, the bus of the Industrial Revolution and a bit of the Knowledge Revolution but caught on with the ICT revolution with about a billion Africans having access to mobile phones. It is a structural revolution that can jump-start a continent”, she stressed.
She described the penetration of mobile phones and digital devices in Africa as the continent’s first revolution ,with the mobile phone as a powerful asset for the average African.
The goal of the forum was to drive policy and strategic discussions aimed at social development with the focus on young Nigerians. It is also aimed at promoting dialogue as well as partnerships among stakeholders within the social impact sector.
A document by the foundation says, “Our agenda in youth empowerment is aimed at strategically providing young people with the necessary tools to be successful in enterprise and digital innovation.
“As the world speeds by in an age of huge technological advancements, African youths are largely in the lurch, battling a lack of access to support and funding for enterprise development and digital upskilling. We want to change that by supporting and partnering with other organizations to ensure that young people can practically create a future they want to live in today”, it says.
The foundation which is non-denominational operates under four pillars namely youth empowerment; Kingdom Expansion; Leadership & Governance and Education.
In the next five years, the Foundation intends to equip and empower 1000 young leaders in public, private and social sectors, support 100 youth-led businesses, transform 100 communities/organizations/groups, support 500 individuals/families for educational advancement and also empower 5,000 African youths with various digital skills.
