Natasha’s daughter builds Kogi orphanage after raising funds to construct and equip a new home for vulnerable children in Okene

Sixteen-year-old Nadia Zakaria, daughter of Kogi Central Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has built, equipped and handed over an orphanage in Etahi community, Okene Local Government Area of Kogi State, in a humanitarian project she began at the age of 15.

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The new facility, built for Oyiza-Salem Divine Orphanage Home, was commissioned on Sunday, 9 August 2026, during a gathering attended by community members, religious leaders, children and other well-wishers.

Nadia initiated the project about a year ago after becoming concerned about children who lacked some of the opportunities and support she had experienced while growing up.

She said her experience of being raised in a loving and supportive home made her think about children who had not enjoyed similar circumstances.

“Today is a very special and emotional day for me. About a year ago, this was simply an idea,” Nadia said.

“I wanted to do something meaningful for children who, through no fault of their own, have not had some of the opportunities that many of us take for granted.”

The teenager said the project initially appeared daunting because of her age and limited experience in fundraising.

“At first, raising enough money to build an orphanage seemed almost impossible. I was only 15, and I had never done anything like this before. But I decided to try,” she said.

According to Nadia, donations and support from family members, friends and members of the public eventually enabled her to raise enough money not only to construct the building but also to furnish it.

“With the incredible generosity of my family, friends and even strangers, we raised enough not only to build this home, but also to furnish every room. And today, what started as an idea has become a home,” she said.

The facility was subsequently handed over to the management of Oyiza-Salem Divine Orphanage Home, which described the intervention as a major improvement in the living conditions of the children under its care.

Nadia’s project comes with a particularly striking backstory. Pastor Kisito Zuberu, founder of the orphanage, recalled the difficult conditions in which some of the children had previously lived.

“When they came last year, the children were sleeping on the ground, but today Miss Nadia Zakari has given us a fully equipped mansion,” Zuberu said.

The orphanage said the new facility would provide more than accommodation, giving the children a safer and more dignified environment in which to live, study and develop.

Speaking at the commissioning, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan said her daughter independently mobilised the resources used for the project.

“My daughter, Nadia, sourced the money spent on the building by herself without me contributing one kobo to the project,” the senator said.

Akpoti-Uduaghan also disclosed that Nadia was already considering another humanitarian project aimed at supporting pregnant women in Kogi Central.

“She is already developing a plan to build a heavily equipped care home for pregnant women in Kogi Central,” the senator said.

The senator praised her daughter for taking the initiative at a young age, saying young people could make meaningful contributions to society when motivated by compassion and determination.

Nadia, meanwhile, used the occasion to encourage other young Nigerians to consider humanitarian projects regardless of their age or financial circumstances.

She thanked those who donated money, shared information about the project or encouraged her throughout the fundraising process.

“To every single person who donated, shared my message, encouraged me or simply believed in this project, thank you from the bottom of my heart. This would not have been possible without you,” she said.

The project also highlights the role of community support in turning a young person’s idea into a tangible intervention.

For the children of Oyiza-Salem Divine Orphanage Home, that intervention has now become a physical home, replacing the difficult conditions described by the orphanage’s founder with a facility designed to provide shelter, dignity and greater security.

For Nadia, the commissioning marks the completion of a project that began with a simple question about how children without similar opportunities could be supported.

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At 16, she has now turned that concern into a lasting humanitarian project in her home state.