By| Nwaijie Rose
A public servant, Nwajie Rose a District Administrator and Data Analyst with Lagos State Government
has demonstrated that meaningful reforms in the public sector can begin from the middle of the system, following the development of a confidential case-reporting platform designed to help school counsellors report child abuse and other sensitive cases without fear of victimisation.
The initiative, developed as a capstone project under the Aig-Imoukhuede Public Leaders Programme (AIG PLP), was conceived to address the longstanding challenge of child abuse cases being suppressed or mishandled within schools.
The AIG PLP is a leadership development initiative that equips public servants across Africa with practical skills, networks and tools to drive reforms and improve public service delivery.
Reflecting on her experience, Onyero said the programme fundamentally changed her perception of public sector leadership, particularly the belief that meaningful reforms could only be initiated by those at the top.
One of the key lessons she took from the programme, she said, was the concept of “leading from the middle”—the understanding that public servants can initiate change regardless of their position within the system.
According to her, the realisation motivated her to address a problem she had witnessed repeatedly in the education sector: the failure to properly report and escalate cases involving child abuse.
She explained that sensitive cases were sometimes handled quietly within schools, with some authorities reluctant to report them because of concerns about damaging the reputation of their institutions.
“When we protect institutions at the expense of children, we fail in our duty,” she said, stressing that counsellors needed a secure channel through which they could report abuse without fear of intimidation or victimisation.
The resulting platform provides school counsellors with a confidential channel to report cases directly, enabling the appropriate authorities to intervene and ensure that reported incidents are professionally handled.
Onyero said the platform had already recorded several cases since its launch, but one particular incident underscored the importance of the initiative.
She disclosed that a young girl who was allegedly being molested by her father was rescued after the case was reported through the platform.
The alleged perpetrator, she said, is a police officer and was taken into custody following the escalation of the case.
The girl was subsequently removed from the unsafe environment and placed in a safe home, where she is receiving care and has been enrolled in a new school.
For Onyero, the outcome reinforced her conviction that public sector reforms can have a direct impact on people’s lives.
She, however, identified bureaucracy as one of the major obstacles confronting efforts to deliver timely interventions.
According to her, urgent cases can sometimes be delayed by administrative bottlenecks, lengthy approval processes and files moving from one desk to another, despite the fact that delays in child protection cases could have serious consequences.
She said the experience had taught her how to navigate the system through persistent follow-up, strategic engagement and respectful but firm advocacy.
Beyond the project itself, Onyero said the AIG PLP had strengthened her personal capacity, particularly in the areas of tenacity, perseverance, negotiation and relationship-building.
She noted that sustainable reform in the public sector could not be achieved by one individual, stressing the importance of collaboration and partnerships.
Looking ahead, she expressed hope that the confidential reporting platform would be expanded beyond Education District IV to the other five education districts in Lagos State.
She said wider adoption would enable more school counsellors to report abuse cases and ensure that more children receive timely protection and intervention.
Onyero urged future participants in the AIG PLP to identify problems that genuinely concern them and commit themselves to solving them.
“If there is one thing the AIG PLP has taught me, it is that reform does not have to wait. It can start now and start with me,” she said.
Her experience, she added, demonstrates that public sector transformation does not always begin with those at the highest levels of authority.
“Sometimes, it begins quietly, from the middle, and from there, it spreads.”
