CUNS awards £3,000 grants to Nigerian nonprofits

The Cambridge University Nigerian Society (CUNS) has awarded £3,000 in grants to three grassroots Nigerian nonprofit organisations through its inaugural CUNS Impact Incubator Prize, established to support organisations addressing challenges within communities across Nigeria.

The three winners — The Mum Bridge & Care Foundation, The Cardio Health, and Her Story Nigeria — each received a £1,000 grant for projects spanning disability-inclusive economic empowerment, community cardiovascular healthcare and women’s entrepreneurship.

The Prize attracted over 100 applications from across Nigeria. Following initial screening, 25 organisations were longlisted and six finalists selected through an independent judging process. The finalists presented their projects at a virtual awards ceremony on 22 August 2026, after which three winners were selected.

The Prize was made possible by Turing Tower and the 7-Fifteen Foundation as principal sponsors, alongside individual donors.

The Impact Incubator Prize was created to extend CUNS’s impact beyond Cambridge by connecting resources and networks within its university community with organisations developing locally led solutions in Nigeria.
CUNS President Olivia Kamsi Muoka said the initiative emerged from conversations about creating a more tangible connection between the Society’s work in Cambridge and communities in Nigeria.

“Much of what we do naturally focuses on building a strong community for Nigerians in Cambridge, but we also wanted to explore how the opportunities and networks available to us here could support people doing meaningful work back home.

“Grassroots organisations often understand their communities deeply and are already doing important work, but relatively modest funding, greater visibility or access to the right networks can make a significant difference. The Impact Incubator Prize was our attempt to start building that bridge.”

The initiative was delivered with the support of the CUNS Executive Committee, which coordinated the application process, fundraising, communications and final awards ceremony.

“This was very much a team effort,” Muoka said. “I am incredibly grateful to our Executive Committee, independent judges, sponsors and individual donors who gave their time, resources and energy to bringing the Prize to life.”

The Mum Bridge & Care Foundation received funding for its Mum Bridge to Business project in Alimosho, Lagos State. The initiative will support 20 mothers with disabilities to develop home-based baking businesses through practical and business training, starter kits and mentorship. The project follows a needs assessment involving more than 55 mothers with disabilities, which identified economic empowerment as a major priority.

The Cardio Health received funding for its Cardio Access Points (CAPs) Initiative, designed to bring preventive cardiovascular care into trusted community spaces. It plans to establish five Neighbourhood Heart Stations providing cardiovascular screenings, counselling and referrals. Over six months, the initiative aims to screen 2,000 residents, provide heart-health education to 4,000 people and train 100 Community Heart Guides.

Her Story Nigeria, in partnership with ImpactHER Africa, will support 60 women entrepreneurs through the second edition of its Entrepreneurship Incubation Programme, providing business training, mentorship and networking opportunities. The programme will culminate in a pitch competition, with the CUNS grant distributed as mini business grants to three participating entrepreneurs.

The independent judging panel comprised Gideon Olanrewaju (LanreShaper), an education development practitioner and social entrepreneur; Adebisi Opeyemi Aminat, an agripreneur and advocate for sustainable agriculture, nutrition and food security; and Dr Adewunmi “Tesla” Akingbola, a medical doctor, infectious disease epidemiologist and public health researcher.

The judges assessed the applications to select the six finalists and, following the finalists’ pitches and question-and-answer sessions, selected the three prize winners.

The inaugural Prize was supported by Turing Tower and the 7-Fifteen Foundation as principal sponsors.

Turing Tower is building the security operating system for regulated enterprises. Its platform brings offensive validation, data security, governance and human risk onto a single evidence architecture, enabling organisations to move from periodic, siloed security assessments to continuous, evidence-backed assurance.

The 7-Fifteen Foundation, the philanthropic arm of 7-Fifteen Capital Limited, supports individuals and communities facing social and economic barriers. Its work spans education, professional and skills development, employment opportunities, social welfare, disability inclusion and broader community development.

Muoka said the sponsors’ support was particularly significant for the inaugural edition.

“We are incredibly grateful to Turing Tower and the 7-Fifteen Foundation for believing in the vision behind the Prize and helping us turn an idea into tangible funding for organisations on the ground. We are equally grateful to the individual donors whose contributions helped us reach the £3,000 prize fund.”

The £3,000 prize fund has now been fully disbursed, with each winning organisation receiving £1,000 to implement its project. CUNS plans to follow their progress, document outcomes and explore opportunities to connect the organisations with wider networks and resources.

For the Society, the ambition is for the initiative to continue beyond its first edition.

“We know that £1,000 does not solve every challenge an organisation faces,” Muoka said. “But for a grassroots organisation, targeted funding at the right time can help launch a project, provide essential resources or demonstrate that an idea works.

“Our hope is that this does not end with one CUNS executive or one edition. We would love to see the Impact Incubator Prize grow into a platform through which the CUNS community and its partners can continue backing promising grassroots organisations in Nigeria.”

The inaugural edition marks the beginning of three projects that CUNS hopes will translate relatively modest investments into measurable community impact, while building a model for sustained engagement between its Cambridge community and grassroots organisations in Nigeria.