Esteem launches two-day Abuja medical outreach to mark silver jubilee

Hundreds of residents in Jahi and Kabusa benefit from free medical consultations, medicines, cancer screening and health education as Esteem Learning Center marks its 25th anniversary with a community outreach programme.

By Abdullahi Yusuf

Esteem Learning Centre on Saturday, July 18th, commenced activities marking its 25th anniversary with a two-day free medical outreach in Abuja, offering medical consultations, medicines, cancer screening, health education and food support to residents of Jahi Phase 1 and Kabusa.

The outreach, organised through the school’s Child2Child Charity Foundation as part of its silver jubilee celebrations, brought together volunteer doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals to provide free services to hundreds of residents, with the programme continuing in Kabusa on Sunday.

Speaking at the event, the founder of Child2Child Charity Foundation and Director of Esteem Learning Centre, Hajiya Rahma Musa Sani (Ummu Soliha), said the initiative reflected the school’s long-standing philosophy of raising children who grow into compassionate citizens.

Rather than limiting education to classroom learning, she said the school deliberately teaches pupils the value of charity from an early age by encouraging practical acts of service inspired by Islamic teachings.

“Since the foundation was established, our objective has been to catch the children young and teach them to reach out to others,” she said.

“We want them to practise the teaching that the best among people are those who are most beneficial to humanity. When children grow up with that value, they become responsible citizens.”

She explained that every pupil contributes each term to the foundation, with the children themselves deciding collectively how the funds should be spent through a student leadership structure that includes an Emir, treasurer and other elected officials.

According to her, previous projects have included constructing a classroom block complete with teachers’ offices and toilets in Nasarawa State, drilling boreholes, renovating schools, distributing food and clothing during Ramadan and supporting vulnerable communities across the Federal Capital Territory and neighbouring states.

This year’s anniversary, however, presented what she described as a unique opportunity.

“The children decided that instead of helping only a few individuals, they wanted to reach entire communities through a medical outreach because many families can no longer afford healthcare,” she said.

She disclosed that the pupils committed more than three million naira (N3,000,000) from their own contributions to purchase medicines and food items for the exercise, while parents and the school also provided additional support.

The school itself catered for volunteers providing medical services free of charge. Perhaps most striking, she said, was the continuing commitment of former pupils.

One alumnus living in Canada, she revealed, donated ₦500,000 towards the outreach shortly before the programme, while many other graduates regularly support the foundation’s humanitarian activities from across the world.

“When I see these children and our old students continuing this tradition, I know our efforts have not been in vain, even if we are no longer here tomorrow, they will continue serving humanity,” she said.

Hajiya Rahma said the choice of Jahi and Kabusa was deliberate rather than symbolic. She explained that Child2Child Charity Foundation has maintained relationships with both communities for years through Ramadan feeding programmes and humanitarian interventions.

Jahi, she said, had previously benefited from the foundation’s relief activities and was selected because of its proximity to the school’s Wuse Zone 6 campus and the evident healthcare needs within the community. Kabusa, where the outreach continues on Sunday, was chosen because of the foundation’s existing work with an orphan centre in the area.

Principal of Esteem Learning Centre, Mallam Abubakar Ilani, said the outreach formed part of several activities marking the school’s silver jubilee.

He said the institution deliberately integrates community service into its educational philosophy so that pupils understand that academic success must be matched by social responsibility.

“The Child2Child Charity Foundation teaches our children that education is not only about certificates, It is about serving humanity,” he said.

He noted that many former pupils returned to participate in Saturday’s outreach, not as beneficiaries but as doctors, volunteers and donours. Some alumni, he said, were now members of the medical team treating patients. Ilani said the outreach was designed to respond to Nigeria’s current economic realities, where many families postpone medical treatment because of financial hardship.

“When people struggle to feed themselves, healthcare naturally becomes a luxury, this programme allows people to discover illnesses they may not even know they have,” he said.

He said residents received free screening for hypertension, diabetes and other common conditions, while those requiring medication were supplied drugs at no cost. Medical counselling was also provided, alongside referrals for specialised treatment where necessary.

Health professionals volunteering at the programme said the outreach also sought to improve public awareness about diseases that are often detected too late.

Coordinator of the School of Post-Basic Oncology Nursing at the National Hospital Abuja, Hajiya Hauwa Lawal, said the exercise brought together specialists from multiple medical disciplines, including paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, dermatology, pharmacy and general medicine.

She said the outreach was organised in collaboration with organisations including the Medicaid Cancer Foundation to expand access to preventive healthcare.

“Our responsibility is to take healthcare to people who may never reach the hospital, we are not only treating illnesses; we are educating people,” she said.

She explained that women attending the outreach received education on breast self-examination and breast cancer screening, while health workers also discussed cervical cancer prevention, prostate cancer awareness, hygiene, nutrition and healthy lifestyles.

According to her, volunteers delivered health talks in multiple local languages to ensure the messages were understood by community members.

“Our objective is to reduce preventable deaths through awareness, the earlier people recognise symptoms and seek medical attention, the better their chances,” she said.

The school’s Director, Hajiya Zainab Isah Galaudu, described reaching the 25-year milestone as an emotional moment.

Looking back, she repeatedly expressed gratitude to Allah for sustaining the institution through what she described as a challenging but rewarding journey. She said one of the most fulfilling aspects of the anniversary was seeing former pupils return to support the outreach as professionals.

“It gladdens our hearts that some of those serving today were once pupils in this school,” she said.

Looking ahead, Hajiya Galaudu said the institution hopes to establish Esteem University as part of its long-term vision of expanding access to quality education.

Former pupils participating in the outreach said the culture of community service learnt at Esteem continued to influence their lives years after graduation.

Dr Fatima Zarma, a member of the Class of 2010, said the outreach aimed to improve health awareness while ensuring residents received free consultations, medication and referrals where necessary.

She said organisers hoped beneficiaries would apply the health advice received during the programme because prevention remains the foundation of good healthcare.

Another alumnus, Mabra Tijjani Jibrin, now a final-year law student at Nile University, said the charity culture introduced at Esteem had inspired many graduates to organise similar humanitarian activities independently.

He said many illnesses remain undiagnosed simply because people lack access to healthcare. “The first step to solving any health problem is knowing that it exists, programmes like this help people identify illnesses early before they become life-threatening,” he said.

As the consultations drew to a close, beneficiaries collected prescribed medications before receiving bags of food staples donated through the Child2Child Charity Foundation, reinforcing organisers’ belief that healthcare support should extend beyond treatment to easing the economic burden on vulnerable families.

With the Jahi outreach completed, the medical team, volunteers and students are set to continue the exercise on Sunday in Kabusa Village, where another community is expected to benefit from the free consultations, specialist screenings, medications, health education and food distribution.

For Esteem Learning Centre, the silver jubilee celebration is less about marking 25 years of existence than demonstrating the values it says have defined the institution since its founding, raising young people who see education not only as a path to personal success, but as a responsibility to serve humanity.

Photos from the outreach: