Elochukwu Benjamin
Awka
A new volunteer movement aimed at deepening citizen participation in governance and community development has been launched in Anambra State, with the Deputy Governor, Dr Onyekachukwu Ibezim, urging residents to embrace service as a lasting legacy rather than a means of financial gain.
The Ka Anyi Soludozie Anambra Volunteers and Ambassadors Network (KADAVAN) was inaugurated in Awka as a platform to mobilise volunteers across the state and the diaspora to support development, value reorientation and responsible citizenship.
Speaking at the inauguration, Ibezim described the initiative as a commendable effort to complement government programmes and rebuild societal values.
“The impact of our lives matters more than the length of our lives. What you are doing is not for money, but posterity will remember and reward your efforts,” he said.
He stressed that while government could provide infrastructure and policies, sustainable development would only be achieved when citizens took ownership of their communities.
“Greater Anambra is possible, but government cannot do it alone. You are ambassadors of a good message, and together we must build the society we want to leave for our children,” he added.
Delivering the keynote address, the Dean of Student Affairs at Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Prof. Kingsley Ubaoji, said reversing the decline in societal values would require deliberate action by families, communities and government.
He urged parents and community leaders to become more intentional about the values they pass on to younger generations.
“Value reorientation will not happen simply because we lament the loss of values. We must deliberately design robust programmes with government, communities and elders leading the process,” Ubaoji said.
The traditional ruler of Amawbia, Igwe Uche Okonkwo, represented by the Palace Secretary, pledged the support of the traditional institution for initiatives that promote peace, unity and development across the state.
Earlier, KADAVAN Founder and General Coordinator, Dr Okechukwu Cyril-Nwuche, said the network was established on the conviction that building Anambra is the collective responsibility of every citizen.
He said the organisation’s theme, Together We Build a Greater Anambra, reflects its mission to mobilise Ndi Anambra at home and abroad as volunteers and ambassadors for good governance, civic responsibility, environmental sustainability, entrepreneurship, peacebuilding and value reformation.
“KADAVAN is not merely another organisation; it is a movement for responsible citizenship, community service and collective development,” he said.
Cyril-Nwuche particularly challenged young people to see themselves as active partners in shaping the state’s future through leadership, innovation, integrity and service.
A major highlight of the ceremony was the conferment of the title of Chief Ambassador of KADAVAN on Governor Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, while Deputy Governor Ibezim was decorated as the network’s Grand Patron.
The Commissioner for Information and Value Reorientation, Dr Law Mefor, was inaugurated as a patron of the organisation, while the Deputy Governor formally inaugurated KADAVAN’s State Executive Council, Board of Trustees, members and local government coordinators.
