Understanding Child Welfare in Iva Valley

In 2024, Kunie Foundation commissioned a comprehensive research study to assess the state of child welfare in Iva Valley, an urban slum community in Enugu State, Nigeria. The goal was to move beyond assumptions and gather reliable, community-rooted data on the realities facing children and families.

The study examined key dimensions of child welfare, including household demographics, school enrollment and access to education, economic security, healthcare access, child protection risks, water and sanitation (WASH), extracurricular participation, and maternal empowerment. With over 400 households surveyed and in-depth focus group discussions conducted with mothers and fathers, the research sought to understand not just statistics, but lived experiences.

At its core, this project aimed to answer a critical question: What does it truly mean to grow up as a child in Iva Valley, and what structural barriers limit their well-being and future opportunities?

To ensure accuracy and depth, Kunie Foundation adopted a mixed-method approach combining quantitative surveys, focus group discussions, and desk research. A total of 406 households were surveyed across key sections of Iva Valley, while separate focus group discussions were held with mothers and fathers to capture gender-specific perspectives on child welfare.

We invested in trained field officers, ethical data collection practices, and digital tools to ensure data integrity, confidentiality, and statistical reliability. Beyond collecting numbers, we prioritized listening, creating safe spaces where parents could openly share their struggles, aspirations, and concerns about their children’s future.

The findings are now being used to inform Kunie Foundation’s program design, advocacy priorities, and strategic partnerships. This research serves as the foundation for targeted interventions in education access, maternal capacity-building, economic resilience, child protection, and WASH improvement initiatives within the community.

By grounding our work in evidence, we are ensuring that every intervention is responsive to real needs, not assumptions.

This research did not end as a report, it became our roadmap for action.

Based on the findings from Iva Valley, Kunie Foundation has directly shaped and launched targeted interventions that respond to the real barriers identified in the study.

Because financial hardship was identified as the primary reason children were out of school, we prioritized educational support initiatives, including school fee assistance, provision of learning materials, and direct engagement with parents to reduce dropout rates.

After identifying severe gaps in WASH conditions and their link to illness and absenteeism, we integrated water, sanitation, and hygiene awareness into our community outreach programs and began advocating for improved infrastructure support through stakeholder engagement.

Recognizing the economic instability faced by over 90% of households, we designed and initiated maternal empowerment and livelihood-focused programs aimed at strengthening mothers’ income-generating capacity. These initiatives directly respond to the data showing that mothers bear the financial burden of school fees, rent, and household survival.

The research also exposed the absence of structured child-focused programs within the community. In response, we began developing structured child-centered engagement activities and community-driven support initiatives that did not previously exist in Iva Valley.

Additionally, the findings now serve as an evidence base for our advocacy efforts. We actively use this data in conversations with government agencies, partners, and donors to push for policy attention and resource allocation to underserved urban slum communities.

In practical terms, this study has allowed us to:

• Design programs rooted in verified community needs.
• Allocate resources based on data, not assumptions.
• Strengthen funding proposals with credible evidence.
• Advocate more effectively for systemic change.
• Build trust within the community by demonstrating that their voices directly shape our interventions.

This project transformed community insight into structured action. It marked the shift from informal support to strategic, evidence-based programming, and continues to guide every initiative we implement in Iva Valley.