WHO ARE WE?
Sustainable Development Network Limited (SDN) is a UK based not-for-profit organisation set up in July 2002 to promote sustainable development at grassroots community level in third world countries. Our programmes address a wide range of sustainable development issues including ethics, environmental education, waste management, sustainable agricultural development, sustainable use of natural resources, and socially responsible entrepreneurship.

WHAT ARE WE UP TO?
We work with community groups to initiate and promote sustainable development projects that will help reduce poverty and encourage environmental protection in rural low-income communities. Most of our projects are in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. We have recently been able to facilitate the formation of Akwamfon Sustainable Community Association (ASCA), officially registered in Akwa Ibom State,  to increase local participation and local networking.  We have also helped formed Emineima Women NGO to reach out to women in Essien Udim and other communities of Akwa Ibom State.  We are also extending our outreach to other regions of Nigeria and other countries such as Cameroon and Kenya where we collaborate with existing organizations.

WHO ARE THE TARGET GROUPS?
We work with three different target groups according to identified needs.

·       Primary and Secondary School Children

·       Community youth groups

·       Entrepreneurs, farmers and agribusiness groups

·       Community based organisations and local groups

WHAT'S THE DEAL FOR PRIMARY AND SECONDARY CHILDREN?
The deal is to "Catch them in their Youth". SDN believes that if children are made aware of the important role the environment plays in development and their daily lives, they are more likely to respond to as well as become proactive towards environmental protection and sustainable development issues.

We seek to use volunteer schools and in addition to raising awareness in environmental issues we also teach them arts and craft. We are introducing other motivational programmes like essay /quiz competitions and drama relating to sustainable development issues/initiate "Green Clubs". In January 2004, SDN and ASCA organized a symposium involving primary and secondary school children as well as teachers, educationists, parents and even children that are not in schools. The symposium discussed topics such as solutions to examination malpractices and exam failures, girls’ education, balancing schooling with family business, and ethics.  We are also networking with other organizations to make training and facilities in information technology available to schools in Nigeria. SDN is also assisting to link some schools in Nigeria with schools in UK and elsewhere.

WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH COMMUNITY YOUTH GROUPS?
Our main focus is on the educationally disadvantaged youths. We are currently working with village youth groups to initiate extramural classes that prepare youths for primary and secondary certificate examinations. We also provide career counselling and facilitate scholarship schemes for this category of youths. Currently, we are supporting the "Ikpe Udok Rural Education project" in Akwa Ibom where extramural lessons are given to prepare people for secondary school examinations.

We are also planning to assist the youths obtain quality vocational training by raising funds they require to pay the necessary fees for their apprenticeship. Also those already engaged in a vocation as entrepreneurs but lacking both the money to get the basic tools/equipments required by their occupation will be considered. Outside the collection and distribution of donated equipment and funds to beneficiaries, SDN seeks to provide basic training and mentoring services in business start-up and strategic management, market linkages, ethics, and environmental management. These services are to be rendered in the local language of the people.

WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH FARMERS AND ENTERPRENEURS?
In recent years, decreasing soil fertility in Africa and elsewhere has continuously resulted in low crop yield that is barely sufficient to feed the household not to mention making enough money to meet other needs like education for the children and medical care. SDN is working on creating awareness amongst farmers on the need to increase their earnings through sustainable agricultural practices and at the same time protect the very environment they depend on for a living.

We encourage people to join existing farming co-operative societies or form new ones so that they can benefit from government, private sector and NGO sponsored agricultural project schemes. We provide mentoring services to farmers, agribusinesses and enterpreneurs. Starting in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria, we work with local groups and experts to facilitate development of demonstration farms to help local farmers. We also provide practical farming information on audiotapes for their listening. National and international market linkage opportunities are also explored.

Lack of access to quality information and communications is a problem for rural people. In the future, we hope to facilitate community owned information and communication centres that will incorporate telephone, email, Internet, computer based library, books, radio listening and television viewing facilities. As a pilot, we are currently assisting few local groups to establish pay phone services in rural areas of Nigeria by supplying them with refurbished mobile phone handsets. We are also providing useful and practical information at our Resource Centre web pages including case studies, project ideas, website directory and news collection that may be useful to people working on sustainable development.

WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH COMMUNITY BASED ORGANISATIONS AND LOCAL GROUP?
We network with community-based organizations and local groups by providing them with free advisory services, linking them to like-minded organizations locally and internationally. We also provide useful information that would otherwise cost them a fortune to get. We are currently providing these services to Emineima Women NGO and Akwamfon  Sustainable Community Association in Nigeria. We also provide similar services to the Akede Women  Group of Kenya and a few other in Cameroon.