Special Needs Initiative for Growth provides empowerment tools, resources and programs for children, early adults, young adults and aged persons with disabilities such as Down Syndrome, cerebral palsy, visually impairment and autism spectrum disorders. We proffer digital solutions and IT Entrepreneurship for mothers with PWDs to thrive better in their businesses and social lives. In 2019 till date the initiative has mentored and provided grant seed capital to 10 low income mothers of Cerebral Palsy children to successfully start viable businesses. Simultaneously, they also proffered arts skills to their CP Children. They sourced a fintech social enterprise that is closing the credit gap for low-income female entrepreneurs in proffering the mothers fintech solutions and data management for their business growth through online investments after sales. Also, the mothers were trained on the fundamentals of digital marketing and IT Entrepreneurship. This was important for us because the mother's experience challenges which affect them physically, emotionally and financially. This project enabled us to train, monitor and evaluate 10 low income mothers who are now independent and able to sustain themselves through their new businesses and provide social, medical and educational intervention for their CP Children. Also, from 2019 till date, we proffered google digital skills, IT Entrepreneurship for productivity, policy knowledge on Internet Governance and ISOC to promote policy making on Technology Rights to Inclusion (Visually-impaired). 31 blind adults from the Federal Nigeria Society for the Blind Lagos state, Nigeria benefited from this program and are undergoing mentorship and have been provided internship platforms to invest on themselves and on the opportunities granted to them. This positive impact has led to a Call to Action; ongoing Policy Reformation to implement those unpopular policies regarding assistive devices for the vision impaired community in the Nigerian community.

https://biolinky.co/specialneedsinitiativeforgrowth

• Nigeria

• Youth
• Older persons
• Women
• People with disabilities
• The poor

This work has been highly replicated and scaled through the positive outcomes established from the over 70 % of the mothers from first cohort. Some of the mothers are applying technology based support and services on their Agricultural Business, Food Business, Health Care Business and Education Technology Business by creating a business online presence to make sales and also invest on other Healthy Financial platforms which they save to acquire interest in expanding their businesses (gaining profitably, acquiring more resources for their businesses and hiring more Staffs to cover other sectors of their businesses). This way, they have been able to replicate this over time, create job opportunities within local communities, provide medical, social and educational intervention for their cerebral palsy children and alleviate themselves from poverty.

Currently, Special Needs Initiative for Growth and the Let Cerebral Palsy Kids Learn Foundation have begun another cohort of career development initiative with support from the Pollination Project and Sifax Group to empower another set of women in Nigeria to scale their businesses leveraging and become resilient through the leverage on Internet Entrepreneurship, Financial Literacy Skills and investment sales so that they replicate the positive outcome of economic stability to their families within various communities in Nigeria.

Our business and career development project for mothers and their cerebral palsy children tagged "empowered mothers, thriving children - Cohort 2" in joint collaboration with the "Let Cerebral Palsy Kids Learn Foundation" is a developmental platform that addresses the poverty alleviation, provides equal opportunities to decent work through entrepreneurship and inclusive career development opportunities for mothers and their Cerebral Palsy Children. We not only train these mothers on Internet Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Digital Marketing skills so that they optimise their business opportunities and scale but we also develop rehabilitative technology curriculum and prototypes for their children and young adults with disabilities, specifically children with Cerebral Palsy in this project. With our Special needs educational accommodations for learning styles and patterns, our customised Artistic working methods for our children and young adults with Cerebral Palsy they get to communicate better, become more autonomous and independent; making it easier for their families and caregivers to support them in their developmental stages.

We leverage on assistive technology, rehabilitative technologies, advocacy, mentorship, capacity building, health support services, career development and entrepreneurship to promote and sustain the social and economic wellbeing and rights of persons with disabilities in Nigeria and other parts of Africa. We empower PWDs to lead more normal lives through assistive and rehabilitative technologies. Thus, the organization pays a great attention to providing for enabling environment for people with disabilities, and particularly women with children with disabilities.