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Key Milestones
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Launch of Nigeria’s Largest Mental Health First Response Data
To mark our 10th anniversary in April 2026, we hosted a press briefing attended by over 10 media organisations, where we called on the Nigerian government and key stakeholders to urgently strengthen mental health systems. During the briefing, we also launched our 10-Year Impact Report–Nigeria’s largest mental health first response data and announced that our 24/7 toll-free helpline, 0800 800 2000, is now disability-inclusive, faith-sensitive, and multilingual.
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Nigeria’s First Cross-Disability Convening on Mainstreaming Psychosocial Disability
She Writes Woman convened Nigeria’s first cross-disability workshop on Mental Health and Psychosocial Disability in July 2025, bringing together stakeholders across all nine disability clusters. Advocacy priorities were aligned, lived experiences were shared, and an intersectional framework for disability reform was collectively advanced.
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Advancing Disability Rights and Global Recognition
In May 2024, SWW officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to advance the rights of persons with psychosocial disabilities in Nigeria. That same year, our Executive Director, Hauwa Ojeifo, was recognised as a Next Generation Leader by TIME Magazine.
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First-ever High-level Roundtable with National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD)
SWW convened with the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) for the first-ever high-level roundtable on rights of persons with psychosocial disabilities in May 2022. And got NCPWD using documented cases of human rights abuses to commit to creating & budgeting a psychosocial disabilities desk which was later fulfilled by 2023.
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Nigeria’s First 24/7 Toll-Free Mental Health Helpline
In October 2020, She Writes Woman became the first private organisation to launch and run a 24/7 toll-free mental health helpline in Nigeria. The helpline 0800 800 2000 has since received over 25,000 calls from all 36 states across Nigeria and expanded into a multilingual service to address language barriers.
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Expanded Safe Place Support Across Nigeria
In 2018, our Safe Place support group expanded to Northern Nigeria, reaching Kaduna during its 10th edition. That same year, the Safe Place Walk-In Centre was launched in partnership with Airtel Nigeria, recording over 100 walk-ins within its first year.
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Gave Opening Remarks at the United Nations Conference Of States Parties
At the United Nations Conference of States Parties (COSP) 14th edition in 2021, SWW Founder, Hauwa Ojeifo gave opening remarks, bringing the voices and challenges of over 1 billion people living with disabilities.
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Keynote at the Global Mental Health Forum
Held in October 2021 in Paris, France, SWW Founder addressed world leaders, humanitarian organisations and human rights defenders on the state of mental health and human rights in Nigeria and around the world. She called for firm accountability and commitment to the CRPD.
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First Person with Mental Health Condition to Testify at the Nigerian National Assembly
On February 17th 2020, SWW Founder Hauwa Ojeifo became the first person with a mental health condition to testify in that capacity before the Nigerian National Assembly on the rights of persons with mental health conditions.
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Received Inaugural HRW Marca Bristo Fellowship
International non-governmental organisation, Human Rights Watch honoured Hauwa Ojeifo as the inaugural Marca Bristo Fellow in 2020 for her work in advancing disability rights in Nigeria and globally. The award is in honour of late disability rights icon, Marca Bristo who championed disability rights in the United States.
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Goalkeepers Global Goals Changemaker Award Winner
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation honoured Hauwa Ojeifo with the 2020 Global Goals Changemaker Award for her gender lens in inspiring and mobilising change in Nigeria. The award is given to someone who uses their personal experience to inspire others and create a better world for all.
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MTV EMA Generation Change Award
Our Executive Director, Hauwa Ojeifo bags the first-ever MTV Europe Music “Generation Change” Award for a young person making a social impact and change for a pressing world issue. The award ceremony was held in Bilbao, Spain and Ojeifo emerged as the first African to ever win this award.
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Received Queen's Young Leader Award
For creating a 24/7 mental health helpline and a women-focused support group, Hauwa Ojeifo received the Queen’s Young Leaders Award from Her Majesty the Queen of England at the Buckingham Palace in June 2018. The Award included a specially curated course in Cambridge University and high-level meetings at The Commonwealth secretariat, and more.
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Gave Remarks on Mental Health at One Young World in The Hague
As an AstraZeneca One Young World Ambassador, Hauwa Ojeifo gave a moving speech to over 2000 delegates at the One Young World summit in The Hague, Netherlands. Ojeifo’s remarks centred around her sexual violence experience and the mental health consequences of this silent pandemic.
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Testified at the First-Ever United Nations Sexual Violence Survivors' Townhall
RISE Now US organised and championed the first-ever United Nations Sexual Violence Survivors Townhall at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. As a part of the Sister Survivors network, Hauwa Ojeifo gave remarks at the two events to world leaders, on the issue of sexual violence and what fixing the system should look like.
“A big thank you to She Writes Woman. I had my first official therapy session yesterday and I must say, it feels really good to have someone to talk to. It feels like a huge burden was lifted off me.”
— Madeeni, Free & Unlimited Teletherapy
Help Us Do More.
Our work is protecting the rights of over 40 million Nigerians and supporting over 40,000 Nigerians with accurate information about mental health and support services like a 24/7 toll-free helpline, free and unlimited teletherapy and a digital community.
