LETTER OF INTRODUCTION AND REQUEST FOR SUPPORT OF OUR UPCOMING EVENT

        It is on this note we write to sort for your support  in kind and cash to successfully host our proposed writing and reading competition scheduled to take place on the 27^{th May, 2008.}

        ^{The entire event is themed "Developing witting skill, in the young for confidence building" it is designed to commit the young ones to critical thinking process on what they intend to pass across through reading and also coach them on how to organize these intentions on paper in a manner that will be clearly understood by the person who reads it, and those who listen, interpret and commit them to work.}

Respectfully submitted,

Amedu Monday Amedu  President /Founder  Gen. Sec/M&E Officer.

Blessing Ejiogu  General Secretary

Prince Danladi Nyam  Treasurer

Mohammed. Nurudeen  Project manager

Philip Joshua  Provost

Joshua J. Ringsum   PRO

 © ERCON/YELF 2008, all rights reserved.

    Youth for Effective Leadership Forum (YELF) An integral project of Eden Readers club of Nigeria (ERCON) Int’l. Concept paper & proposed writing and reading contest 27^th may 2008.

Project out lines:

1.   What is YELF?

2.   Vision

3.   Mandate

4    Mission

5.   Approaches (activities)

6.  Proposed project

ü Target audience

ü Categories

ü Project description

ü Objectives

ü Anticipating impact

ü Marketability of the project

ü Budget analysis

ü Conclusion

7.   Other matters for consideration

1.   WHAT IS YELF?

In a way of introduction, YELF is an acronym of youth for Effective Leadership Forum. This project is an initiative of Eden Readers’ Club of Nigeria (ERCON), which is currently working on 2 of the 8 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): promoting universal Basic Education and Ensuring Environmental sustainability. Its core focus is to strengthen Youth / Leadership development projects in the state, Nigeria and Africa through education and social events that engage Youth/ Leaders in and on interacting platforms, with eye on effectiveness in service delivery that seeks to develop young people into self sustained individuals, able to build self- esteem & positive attitudes, and find knowledge around vocational practices that will expose and offer them the opportunity to train and acquire entrepreneurial skills, which  make them confident and versatile in maintaining all manner of jobs and finding a better livelihood (empowerment).

2.   VISION

Our vision is to see a Nigeria, Africa and world free of ignorance and illiteracy, where Leadership is effective and young people have the opportunity to realize their potentials and pursue their aspirations, even as they work with Leadership to make it work in an atmosphere of peace, literacy, poverty and corruption free, and sustainable environment.

3.   MANDATE

To hold activities that seek to promote the culture of reading for writing skills development and transforming leadership through education and social events for youth integral development (which covers their physical, spiritual, mental and intellectual growth).

4.   MISSION STATEMENT

Our mission is to engage young people in intense reading programs and entrepreneurial skills acquisition (vocational) training for self sustainability and personal development and also involve youth/leaders in interactions that aim to reduce leadership ineffectiveness in service delivery and expose youth to participation, scholarships and other resources for empowerment.

Through this statement of purpose, this project reduces: ignorance and illiteracy, youth idleness and unemployment, immorality, alcoholism, other unholy behaviors, critical mind-set towards leadership and reduction of poverty level through education and social events.

5.   APPROACHES (Activities)

a.         Reading and writing program (RWP)

This is our core education and information centred project where the umbrella organization: ERCON better featured. The approach focuses on working with the young people in and out of school to instil reading and writing discipline in them for self development, confidence building and capacity expansion. Achievement shall be through engagement of target audience in discussion groups, reading habit cultivation clubs and prizes giving writing and reading competitions. This approach of ERCON/YELF projects takes reading and writing from just being a classroom affair to a level of being a societal problem solving concept, where the one to write works on the task of creating ideas in language and putting these ideas in written structure suitable to the challenges of the reader and meeting the goals of writer at the same time.

b.         Vocational Training Program (VTP)

Through this project, youth’s capacity will be build up through educational conferences, seminars, intense workshops and social events so that they become resourceful, intelligent; spiritually and physically empowered (integral development) to live good life and get involved in leadership roles playing to tackle corruption, and consequently improving effective leadership development in their communities through strategies and participation. This means that through diverse skills acquisition trainings, youth are developed to be self sustained, contributing positively to peace building and societal change.

c.         Scholarship and Awards Program (SAP)

This approach exposes young people, who mostly are less privileged and/or are from humble backgrounds and are trained through our project to a reasonably accepted level to education and other scholarship opportunities or resources that enable them start up good livelihood, break the spell of poverty and illiteracy and build confidence to compete well in the growing world. Through this very program, effective leadership awards will be bestowed on leaders of government establishments, CEO of businesses, NGO executives and head of academics and health institutions that are stakeholders in the struggle for ensuring youth integral development through role modelling, supports, mentoring and other medium designed to establish strong relationships between them and the youth in the society.

d.         Media and Advocacy Program (MAP)

            An interactive platform, basically on radio and television where stakeholders, political leaders, youth and executive members of our project meet regularly to discuss and educate larger audience on how literacy advancement can lead to effective leadership, environmental sustainability, youth integral development and poverty reduction. This program will also publish magazines, newsletters and other paper medium of communicating information that addresses issues earlier mentioned, corruption and HIV education among other social vices.

e.         Information & Communication Technology Program(ICTP).

            For the purpose of empowerment, job creation and giving youth opportunity to increase their ability to the use of ICT tools effectively so as  to enhance their literacy status, technical skills and knowledge on global issues such as Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), this project will set up ICT training centers in several locations especially rural communities where these opportunities have been lacking before now. The focus is to bridge digital divide and empower the rural poor youth with information and knowledge to do well in the competitive world.

6.         THE PROPOSED PROJECT

            The proposed ERCON/YELF project is a writing and reading contest scheduled to take place on the 27^th May, 2008 (The National Children’s Day). It shall be an essay writing competition.

a. Theme of the project:

Developing writing skills in the young for confidence building

b. Essay topic:

The Gold I found in reading

c. Target Audience:

2 categories: category 1, Primary Pupils (class 5/6) and category 2, secondary school students (JSS 3 – SSS).

d. Project Description:

            The concept of writing and reading competition is reversed from what it usually used to be known: “reading and writing” competition because of the fact that writing is the most serious task that commits the young ones to critical thinking on what they intend to pass across through reading (communication) and to organize on papers, in a serial manner, these thoughts in a language form that makes their ideas and intentions clearly understood by the person who reads these mind contents and the person who listens, interprets (decodes) and commits them to work.

In a more tighter note however, this project is inspired by the need to bring the attention of the society especially the academic society to the importance of investing big in the development of writing skills projects of the young in primary and secondary schools so they are able to build confidence to communicate (read) effectively in all forms of engagements and presentations.

            Moreover, the proposed writing and reading project recognizes the fact that reading stimulates writing process, but focuses on writing first because the project deals with young people who already have passed the level of learning word recognition and literal comprehension and interpretation of such symbols. It is designed to take them through learning how to write good essays, coach them on how to master numbers of skills and simple writing approaches that are not easy to acquire and how to put their ideas into certain creative and more acceptable and recognizable word units that makes more sense and solves problems. In a way of starting, we ask that they commit their pen to paper and write essay on the topic “the gold I found in reading”, for rewarding prizes on the 27^th May, 2008.

e. Objectives of the Project:

Ø To prepare young minds to effectively handled and write schools’ essay topics with better approach and confidence

Ø To create an incentive that makes young people want to build reading culture for writing skills development

Ø To expand their knowledge of difficult words as they build vocabulary through simple research and composition of those words into sentences

Ø And to build their confidence in presentations through often public communications, of the composed readable symbols as they grow into effective future leaders

   f. Anticipating Impacts:

Ø Promoting and strengthening of universal Basic Education (UBE) projects in Primary and Secondary Schools

Ø Strong reduction of illiteracy and ignorance amongst target audience and improving the standard of education

Ø Contributing immensely towards integral human development through intense reading and writing work (task)

Ø Improving economic development and developing leadership process for poverty reduction through awareness and sensitization on intense reading.

g. Marketability of the Project:

Ø This project will spread more information on ERCON/YELF meaning / work as a body and strategies for promoting UBE and ensuring environmental sustainability, as well as provide information on the strength and weaknesses of the body to donors for supports.

Ø It will have provision for empowering contestants from schools and all participants with mouth watering prizes / consolation prizes in cash and kind as well as give out awards & certificates (1^st, 2^nd & 3^rd) of best performance to contributing institutions.

Ø The project is going to open for prospective donors and sponsors to showcase their products through adverts, donation of packages for prizes to winners and opportunity for radio and TV interview with their marketers on their business ideas, successes, innovations and other activities. It means the project will be an avenue for them to sell their products and concepts to the larger world and find scope to empower more human persons.

Ø The project will engage facilitators and panel of judges from reputable academic institutions who have unquestionable background to monitor and score performance and follow progress of contestants. Appearance fee, T-Shirts, caps, and other promotional resources are welcome from any prospective sponsor for this team.

Ø Communiqué of the event and subsequent ones will be published in national dallies. Also paper reports will be produced for distributions to donors and sponsors to follow up and monitor progress of ERCON/YELF projects.

Ø And another marketing aspect of the project will be placing of her adverts on radio, TV, production of Video CD, and tapes of her events for sale to the larger community.

h. Budget Analysis:

 i. Conclusion:

        “Developing writing skills in the young for confidence building” is a unique theme drafted for the proposed writing and reading competition slated to take place on the 27^th May 2008 in that it will help to expand the learning capacity of young people in the area of setting out their own views on a variety of essay writing subjects, build their confidence in self – expression and communication, and most importantly the project offers the young most accurate method of accessing their ability to form words creatively and communicate the written words effectively through reading.

        Youth for Effective Leadership Forum (YELF), an initiative of Eden Readers Club of Nigeria (ERCON) calls for your supports and intervention for achievement of this project and transformation of our future leaders through education and social events.

7.            Other matters for consideration outside proposed project budget analysis:

Ø Good office location and furniture

Ø 3 computer sets and two laptops for administrative work

Ø Funding our administrative cost / media  and talents promotion shows

Ø More sponsors of educational conference / seminars

Ø Educational books and other library materials

Ø Other logistics and mobility costs.